Charlie's Path
by TheChilangoSaurio
Summary: What if the missile didn't hit its target? What would happen to a young, inexperienced raptor, raised in captivity, suddenly stranded from her pack and confronted to a wide, sometimes frightening world? This is the story of Charlie, and her struggle to survive in a wider, wild environment. I hope you enjoy. Commentaries and criticism welcome.
1. Foreword

**Foreword**

Jurassic World.

* * *

The human wailed as she sank her teeth on his neck. A vigorous shake and it was done in a second.

Something rustled nearby. Charlie raised her head, ready to strike. She saw a figure crouching in the darkness, staring right back at her. She recognized him.

Owen lowered his rifle, keeping his eyes on her. Charlie tilted her head, chirping friendly.

Nameless was the new alpha, and she had turned the pack against the humans. Blue didn't mind. Charlie would do as Blue does, so she didn't mind either.

But Owen was part of the pack. He was always fighting Blue, and given the chance, Charlie would probably have helped her maul him, establishing her as the new alpha.

But Blue wasn't there. Nameless wasn't there. Charlie didn't quite like the new alpha. But Charlie liked Owen.

The young raptor heard a rustling behind her. She jumped as if she was spring loaded.

There was a loud whistle, and then everything busted into flames. A fraction of a second late and she would have been blown to pieces.

Still, Charlie was pushed by the strength of the explosion several feet on the air, landing far away from where she stood. Small chunks of ground and vegetation fell on her, the amber fire fading into darkness, just as her consciousness.

* * *

Charlie opened her eyes. Her whole body was sore, but complete. The jungle was in total silence, except for the gentle rustling of fire nearby.

The emerald raptor stood up, shaking off the mud and dust from her body. She turned her head one way and the other, trying to find her sisters. She called them. There was no answer.

She sniffed the air, trying to pick their scent. There was Owen's. There was Barry's. And there was Blue's.  
She followed her nose to the place where the scents mixed in a mess. There happened something violent. There was a log impregnated by Barry's fear and Blue's rage. Charlie knew she didn't kill him, for there was no smell of blood. The air was loaded with the stench of burned rubber and fuel: Owen's fast thing.

Maybe all settled back to normal.

She followed the traces through a dirt trail, marked by recent tire prints. She recognized her sisters' footprints, apparently chasing the vehicles. They went all the way to the concrete place.

Charlie found the truck and the bike parked. Her senses went to full alert, perceiving the aroma of the new alpha, and… another one. It was something she had never smelled before, but it definitely reeked like danger.

Something was wrong. Things got very confuse.

She looked around. The place was destroyed. There had been one hell of a fight and the presence of the new alpha, her sisters and this new other one impregnated everything. And then… there was also Owen's scent. And more humans. Lots of them.

The young raptor's mind tried to figure out the scenario when she picked something nearby. It was Delta.

Charlie stopped caring about what happened at the scent of her sister. She had been growing anxious being alone, and the presence of enemies around didn't help. She needed the reassurance of the pack, the strength on numbers.

She ran to where the aroma came. It was from a group of ornamental bushes, under a knocked up palm tree.

Charlie called up. There was no answer, but she was positive Delta was right there. Was she hiding? Was she hurt?

She approached cautiously. She peered through the branches.

She could see the bulge of a body through the vegetation. She immediately knew it was Delta, and moved forward, chirping in relief.

Her sister didn't answer the salute. She didn't eve move.

Charlie tilted her head, confused, feeling the angst growing stronger. She chirped again, demanding attention. She even dared to hit the bulge with her muzzle: it would have won her a quick bite back in the day.

But nothing happened.

Charlie leaned forward, her fore claws on her sister; the body felt cold, and wet; Charlie recognized the smell of blood, pouring from deep puncturing wounds on her sister's sides. The young raptor looked at the other one's head: her jaws and eyes were mid open, but Charlie knew she couldn't see her. She wasn't breathing.

Her mind couldn't wrap around the situation. She nipped on her sister's neck once, and twice, and a third time, stronger that she ever dared to. The body stayed limp.

Charlie started to shake in panic. She cocked her head around, looking, but she didn't know what or who…

Blue. Echo. Owen.

She jumped out of the bushes, calling with all her might. She ran through the street, yelping, and sniffing, and calling again. There was Blue's scent all over, but she didn't answer.

Instead, a thunderous roar came from afar.

Charlie shrunk at the sound, mute. It sounded like nothing she had ever heard before. It was frightening.

She had to get out from there. She had to get back home.

She ran away from the concrete place, back into the dark jungle. She knew Blue did the same, and maybe Echo was with her.

They probably went back to the den. She would find them there.

The young raptor got lost in the night. Far behind her, the deep roar shook the air again.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

In the wild.

* * *

Her gasps went slower, as she began to catch her breath. Warm blood was dripping from her muzzle, the taste of flesh in her mouth, the relieved tension of a successful hunt … it felt great.

Far away, she could hear the scared yelps of the herd. Runners weren't the kind to stick for one of their fallen, let alone by night.

Killing in the dark was easier, but the noise would attract unwanted attention soon. She ventured too much behind enemy lines.

It had been a good while since her last meal, and she was ravenous. The killing would feed her for at least a couple of days… that is if she was able to drag it out, and no one showed up first.

Wheels rolled on the leafy ground, the sound of engines roaring through the darkness; Charlie was aware of it immediately, raising her head from the killing, hearing as the vehicles approached. They were clumsy. And so have she been.

She uttered a belligerent growl. The bellow of the jeeps was clearer, and she was sure they brought their barking weapons along.

She wished Blue was there. She was a fighter; she feared no one, and in other times, she would have stood beside her, ready to claw their innards out.

Then again, Blue wasn't there. Charlie wasn't Blue, and she was much outnumbered. They were more. Many more.

As the headlights shun trough the foliage, she hesitantly decided to leave. She left them with her hard earned prize, and ran into the night. Except for the dead body, it would be as if she was never there.

* * *

Night was chill. The air whistled beside her, the forest a blur of pale green, black and blue; there was nothing on the island, alive that is, faster than her. The slick body cut through the darkness, fresh air filling her lungs, warm blood fueling her body. In a short time, she was out of reach from any headlights, and into the comforting, wild darkness of deep jungle.

She stopped and sniffed the air, heavy with moist. Clouds began to swallow the stars, and the roar of thunders made the jungle shiver. Slowly, one drop at a time first, then suddenly at full force, the storm fell over the island.

She ran to the cliffs, to the caves.

Hidden by ravines and ferns, a narrow path between boulders gave access to a warm, protected labyrinth of caves. Other dinosaurs couldn't reach it, steep as it was; the humans couldn't find it, hidden far from their concrete homes; it was dark, dry and warm: it was actually better than the den. It was the ideal home for a raptor.

In the dark, contrived mess of hallways and vaults, she felt safe.

She shook off the water, causing the angry shrieking of bats, hanging from the cave's roof. The raptor found her nest; it was made of dirt, flattened vegetation and sticks. Having the materials, it would have had fabric, probably tools and objects she found on the ground, like the one she had on her paddock. But she was no longer there.

She could hear the muffled sound of the rain, the chatter of bats and rats in the darkness, and a distant thunder of waves, crashing on the cliff sides, puffing through underwater cavities.

Now that her body was getting cooler, she felt the aching of her sore muscles and the bruises from her hunt. Young runners were relatively easy to kill, but they didn't go down without fighting.

She stretched thoroughly, and snorted the animal equivalent of a sigh. The stone walls and the dark soothed her, and it was way better than sleeping under the weather, as she tried not very long ago.

She curled around, her eyes still open, still alert, until sleep came little by little.

* * *

Something awoke her.

She raised her head, tilting it to adjust her hearing. The storm had stopped, but over the puff of the waves she could hear a different, unnerving sound. It was a distant buzz, like that of a bug, but from something much bigger.

She crawled out her hideout cautiously. It was not long after sunrise, and the hot South American sun had turned the rain into a heavy fog. She climbed down the rocky hillside and ran to the jungle, being as stealthy as no other animal in the island could be.

There it was again; the sound of blades through the air, approaching. Charlie observed, hidden under the foliage, as the gray chopper passed by.

She let out a rancorous hiss. Humans were going out from their side of the island more often… nothing good could come from that.

The helicopter took a wide turn and flew towards her refuge, getting closer to the ground, as if looking for something. She crouched, her eyes fixed on the machine until it passed her again, and the sound of the rotor got lost in the distance.

Finally, there were only the sounds of the forest: birds, and insects, and the uncertain call of the trumpeters far, on the valley.

She uneasily ran to the grazing fields.

* * *

The flat-bill and the trumpeter herds were feeding uneasily. They knew something was off, but couldn't make out exactly what; the sentinels were constantly standing up on their hind legs, scanning the range methodically before leaning back to graze. The three-horned and the leafed-backs shared their worries.

Charlie watched, hidden, completely motionless but ready to sprint. Younglings were kept safe on the inside of the herd, surrounded by the adults. But if she was fast enough…

She only needed a gap in the sentinels' circle, a brief window.

There!

The raptor darted through the field, so quickly that the watchers delayed few, precious seconds to give the alarm. By the time the three-horned and the leafed-backs closed rows around their own calves, it was too late for one of the younger flat-bills.

It was barely bigger than Charlie herself; the raptor fell on it with fierce, and both dinosaurs rolled on the grass, a mayhem of growls, terrified cries and claws and teeth slashing.

Charlie pinned her crying prey to the ground, sickle claw ready for the final blow. She let out a satisfied snarl… and a sudden, loud howl made her flinch.

The flat-bills, panicked at first, began to approach closer and closer, bellowing and stomping as loudly as they could, trying to scare off the predator. The initial surprise wore off quickly, and seeing a lone raptor made the herbivores bolder.

Charlie looked at them intently. The first time she approached the herd, they looked so harmless; they were colorful, with vibrant designs on their long faces; and they moved so slow, grazing so peacefully… she was sure to take one youngling easily by herself, while the adults cowardly ran away.

She was proven wrong the hard way. And now, she waited too long to kill.

One of the adults charged, making the earth shake beneath his feet; Charlie felt her heart pounding. Up close, they were really intimidating, and no matter how she attacked it, she would never be able to kill something that size alone.

The trampling dinosaur stopped mere feet before her, stomping on its front legs and bellowing menacingly, moving its head up and down; the bright colors on it became less ornamentation and more a warning display.

The raptor showed her teeth, hissing as the other members of the herd approached. She was outnumbered once more. Overwhelmingly outnumbered.

She retreated slowly, nervously trying to convince the adults that she was in control, and that she was not afraid of any of them.

The raptor walked away, slowly but ready to dash. Once she made a good distance between the fallen calf and herself, she turned back.

The big defender of the herd was nuzzling insistently at the youngling. The rest of the family joined around, eyes fixed on the predator that never went far enough for them.

Finally, after long minutes, the calf stood hesitant; it was not dead, but mauled and too scared to make a movement, it yelled a shrill cry of pain and fear. The herd would probably stick together around the area, until the little one fully recovered.

Charlie tilted her head, and gave a defiant snarl. The adults turned theirs, bellowing and puffing.

The huntress curled up her lip, hissing. She trotted her way out of the open, under the uneasy look of all the other herds.

* * *

It was shady under the trees. The sun shun through the foliage, projecting on the brown and green floor of the forest. Charlie was playing with the corpse of one of the little beaked ones, the only thing she could catch all day.

The hunt brought memories to her mind. She was used to hunt with her sisters. Not the hulking dinosaurs, of course, but she had no doubt they could bring one down, once they were together.

She thought about the adults, joining to defend the calf, and then nuzzling it back to its feet, caressing it back to health.

She remembered Echo and Blue, and the fight they had for dominance of the pack. Things heated up too much, but when it was clear who was at command, it was Blue herself who licked the deep gashes, made by her own claws on her sister's muzzle.

That time, after the fight the humans took Echo away, much for Blue's dismay. She passed that day walking along the cage bars until sunset, calling in distress. She even slept by the gate, refusing to move, until they brought her sister back. She reeked of humans and their chemicals, but Blue didn't mind. And so didn't Charlie and Delta.

She stood up. The thoughts changed her focus. She shook the little dinosaur's body in her jaws a couple of times, ripping it apart before eating it.

She hadn't look for her sisters today.

She moved north. She was only beginning to explore the entirety of this new, wider world.

Here and there, the island had secrets to be understood, new things to find. Charlie often passed time "studying" the other dinosaurs, that she never saw before. The leafed-backs and their spiked tails; the three-horned with huge frills; the large duck-bills; the runners; the trumpeters… and she knew there were others, still caged, on the human side of the island.

She sniffed the air as she ran through the jungle. It would be difficult after the rain, but this time she was sure to find her sister's scent. From time to time, she let out a calling, waiting the call back from the other raptors. But none ever answered yet.

She came to a halt when she found a large, corroded wall before her. Beyond she could make out the rest of the building, partially devoured by the ferns, vines and trees.

Hidden among the jungle, there were things left by the humans; old, corroded walls made her think back of the cage she lived in. Walls were all she knew since back then: they meant imprisonment… and yet, somehow, they always fill her with a feeling of home.

Now walls were there to keep the humans out, on their side of the island.

Although she never came back to the concrete place, she often approached, always at night, to spy from a distance, watching the movements, wondering...

Curiosity sometimes told her to get closer. She once ate from the hand of a human, and the longing for a warm place, company and easy food was alluring.

Experience preferred to head back to the forest. The smell of powder, steel and confinement, and a couple of scars burnt on her skin made the place less than appealing. Out in the jungle wasn't that bad. She might find her sisters that day. She might find them.

She had to.

* * *

 **Hi guys, thanks for the favs and follows. I would probably update weekly, for it is more comfortably to me and gives me good time to order my ideas for the chapters. Feel free to review and point any weird thing out.  
Greetings, and have a nice summer (I mean, if it is summer over there. Otherwise have a nice whatever any other season)!**


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Bad hunt.

* * *

One of the trumpeter sentinels honked a warning, and soon the herds were fleeing through the field or forming phalanxes of menacing horns and spiked tails.

Charlie roared in frustration, running after the fugitives, although the effort would be fruitless. Her ambush was discovered too quickly, and now it would be nearly impossible to catch anything.

The raptor gave up the pursuit, standing right in the middle of the range, gasping and watching the preys out of reach. She angrily snarled at the escaping animals, and trotted back to the jungle. Once again, with her stomach empty.

The herds lately became more suspicious, and the watching doubled. Charlie committed the mistake of frequently attack them, keeping them nervous and ready to bolt at the slightest sign of danger. She hadn't had a successful hunt for days now.

The raptor walked through the jungle; she moved lightly, but fast, making almost no sound on the soft ground.

* * *

A grey blur caught her sight. A sleek, four legged body moved fast through the fern-covered soil, taking low but long jumps. Charlie recognized the furry animal; it was no dinosaur, but the difference meant nothing to her: meat was meat.

The deer had amazing agility; it zigzagged sharply, looking for low braches, bushes and roots, anything that could persuade or slow down its pursuer. Unfortunately, such pursuer was built for the chase.

For Charlie, it was no very different from the pig-hunt. The dinosaur could perform turns almost as narrow as the mammal, using her tail as counterbalance. The hard part was guiding it to where Charlie wanted.

Usually, Blue leaded the hunt, and she and her sisters drove the prey easily to the kill zone. It was harder doing it alone, but she was far more intelligent than her prey.

Charlie moved forward, slightly ahead of the deer. It made a sudden turn, and the raptor followed.

The deer looked desperately to go back to the woods, into tighter space, where it would be easier to lose the bigger predator; but for each time it ran back, Charlie had already anticipated, forcing it where the trees were more spread.

They finally got to the forest limits. Beyond the line of trees were the open ranges where the herds used to graze. Once the deer crossed that line, it was dead.

The raptor growled with anticipation. The closer she was getting to the fields, the more anxious she got, pushing her prey with more and more obstinacy, focusing maybe too much on the chase, and too much less on what stood up ahead.

An angry roar made the deer bolt to the open. There was the chance Charlie was hoping for.

She dashed after, claws spread, jaws salivating…

And she froze on its feet, mere inches before the little three-horned, that jumped and ran away from her with a painful cry.

Charlie stared at the two massive adults to whom the calf was running to. They seemed as shocked as she was, and for a second all stayed still, not knowing what to do.

One of the adults bellowed an air-shaking battle cry, and the earth quivered under Charlie's feet, as the pair of gigantic bodies rammed at her at full speed. The raptor turned on her heels and made it for the forest, knowing very well what an angry three-horned was capable of.

Charlie dashed for her life, hearing behind her the sound of trees snapping at the irresistible force of the brutes.

They were gaining ground. She might have been faster than them, but now she was tired by infructuous hunts, and weakened by hunger. The half defiant, half panicked cry she gave while running was answered by a furious snort, and she could feel the warm breath of the beast on her back.

The three-horned lowered its muzzle and swept it sideways. Charlie felt a hit, and suddenly the world spun out of control, her body tossed through the air.

She was lucky not to crash against a tree, but she rolled a good distance before stopping. The adrenaline and fear let her ignore the pain, and she was on her feet before the beast could trample her to finish the job.

She forgot, however, of the other one.

The raptor barely had time to dodge the spear-like nasal horn, but one giant foot kicked her with force. This time, a tree stopped her flying too abruptly.

The three-horned couldn't stop and crashed head first against a trunk. There was a loud, snapping sound. The tree shook, roots pulled out from the ground, moaning as it fell. The dazed dinosaur took a few steps backwards, shaking its head.

Charlie stood up, like spring loaded. The first three-horned resumed its attack, its head falling down, trying to impale the raptor with its two large horns. Charlie shrunk, getting right in the middle of them, as they sunk on the earth. She foolishly slashed the heavy armored forehead, and in response the giant swept its head forward and up, sending the raptor flying like a rag doll.

This time Charlie managed to land on her feet. All her body was a ball of pain, but fear gave her renewed strength. Her mind searched desperately for a way out.

She ran madly… straight at her second attacker.

Her opponent's muzzle lowered to the ground, ready to strike. To avoid the hit, she jumped, getting in the way upwards of the massive nose; the force of the blow catapulted her once again.

The agile raptor shifted her body midair. A treetop was getting closer really fast.

She clawed frantically, slapped by leaves and branches. She felt a searing pain on her thigh, and the warm humidity of her own blood pouring. Her fall came to an abrupt end, as her talons found a thick enough branch to support her weight. She grasped desperately at the tangled foliage, fighting to keep her balance.

Suddenly the tree shook fiercely: the two colossi knew she was up there, and wouldn't give up their efforts easily. The tree shuddered, but its roots were deeply burrowed, keeping it from fall.

Charlie held up, hissing and snarling in impotence and fear. Down there, the three-horned rammed and bellowed, circling the tree and charging again, steadfast on their purpose of killing.

* * *

The sun was very much lower when the call of the herd finally drove the two animals away from the trunk. By the time both got out from the forest, they had forgotten about the raptor up the treetop.

But Charlie took a long time before going down, fearful of the return of the giants. It was dark way before she was on her way home, limping.

The raptor crawled back to her nest, feeling miserable. Now that adrenaline wore off, she felt the damage on all her body: she was lucky not to be a trophy speared on a horn, but everything in her was bruised and full of scratches, and her thigh bled; it was an ugly gash, probably made by a sharp, thick stump. It would not kill her; at least, not the wound itself.

Charlie hardly understood how everything on and inside her hurt so much, and began to lick her injuries on a pitiful effort to reduce the stabbing pain.

For the first time in a long while, she let out high, painful chirps claiming for the attention of a caring pack. The night grew older as she continued her cries, but no one came.

Finally, pain and exhaustion silenced her. She curled around, still aching, and closed her eyes to a dreamless, pitch-black sleep.

* * *

 **Hey guys, thanks for your reviews and follows. I'm glad you're finding this little history of mine of your liking.**  
 **I'll be updating each tuesday. Have a great week, everyone!**


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Land of giants

* * *

Afternoon found Charlie chewing on tree bark with obvious displeasure. She didn't eat it, but munching on it tricked her stomach, allowing her to stand the hunger a while longer.

She heard the small beaked ones, feeding on ripe fruits and weeds amidst the trees' roots. They were incredibly near, fearless of the raptor. Have Charlie being capable of it, she would have felt it as a mockery. She wasn't that far from thinking it, anyway.

She snarled angrily at them, but stopped abruptly. The very effort to let out a growl made her entire body ache. All the little scratches on her skin healed quickly, and even the cut on her thigh stopped bleeding soon enough, although it would be a nasty scar; a lasting remainder of never get close to a three-horned ever again.

The little dinosaurs jumped, scattering on all directions, but never went too far, and came back quickly.

Charlie stood up slowly, groaning. She has had more than enough mockery.

The raptor limped through the forest, sniffing for food, water, or her sisters. Finding the later would bring the rest, plus the consolation and care she was desperately longing.

A rustle of leaves caught her attention. Something crawled beneath the carpet of dead foliage.

The raptor sank her muzzle under the leaves, sniffing. Her jaws gave a sudden click when they snipped on something soft and slimy.

Charlie grimaced as she raised her head, the salamander still twisting between her jaws. She wasn't very fond of the taste, but she threw her head back, opening her maw and swallowing the whole thing. She changed her mind: she now hated them.

Salamanders and frogs were the only thing she could catch in her condition. She had tried on the bats at the cave, snatching them as they flew out at night. She caught a pair before they learned of the danger, and began to fly just out of her reach. Rats had also learn to stay away from her, which left her with no option but to leave her refuge and climb down the slope to find something to eat. With her hurt, stiff body, it wasn't a pleasant trip.

There was another rustling of leaves. Charlie curled up her lips in disgust; her stomach growled. She sank her muzzle under the leaves again.

* * *

The trumpeters drank with an eye on the raptor lying under the palm trees near the pond. Charlie hissed at them, cranky, but didn't move.

Even after drinking, she still had the taste of salamanders on her mouth, and was constantly rubbing her tongue against the ceiling of her mouth to clean it. Irked, she decided to lay down under the shade, eyeing the herds that stopped by to take a sip.

As soon as the three-horned showed up, and one of them put its sight on her, she ran away, as fast and discretely as she could.

* * *

Charlie sighed, lowering her head to the ground. The searching of the day had been infructuous, still no sign of any of her sisters. Instead, the choppers appeared twice through the day, and she was sure of having heard vehicles just outside the woods; further from human territory that they've ever been before.

Charlie closed her eyes. She had been moving north again, slightly west, following the mountains to the farthest corner of the island. She knew humans probably wouldn't venture into the most arduous terrain. With any luck, she would find easy food and a place to rest and heal sooner.

Perhaps even her sisters were already there…

What was that?

The raptor opened her eyes briefly.

There was it again.

She heard a fearful shriek, and the long, alarmed hooting of the trumpeters.

Charlie raised her head, twisting around, trying to spot danger…

And then she heard it: an ominous roar; one that she remembered with a shudder.

There was a commotion. Charlie saw birds flying startled on the distance, as the sound of panicked cries and fierce growls filled the air. It all came up from the further corner of the grazing fields.

Charlie recognized the shrieks: it was a flat-bill. It sounded like it was… in pain. It sounded like it was afraid.

The distress call of the herbivore strung a chord on Charlie's instinct; she stood up. And then she hesitated.

Flat-bills were four tons, thirty six feet long creatures; hulking mountains of muscle that traveled in herds. Even if they had not spiked tails, or horns, or armor, Charlie now knew better than to mess with them.

And there was something, out there, hunting them down.

She heard the booming, chilling roar.

It was not worth it. Or so her mind told. Her guts had a different opinion.

After some minutes, the young huntress made up her mind. She would take her time to get there, but she would risk a trek.

* * *

As she ventured through the fields and into the dense forest, Charlie thought of Nameless. She was the only one she knew could bring down something that big.

She hadn't found her either, although she was someone she didn't looked for so badly, really. There was something off with her; she talked like one of them, moved like one of them… but her pale skin, her red eyes, her wicked long arms, her sheer size… all of that made Charlie feel uneasy.

She didn't quite like her. But she was alpha. Blue considered her that. And so did Echo and Delta. Charlie had to, too.

The good side was that she would not be alone anymore. She didn't quite like Nameless, but she was part of her pack. She would take care of her. Maybe she knew where the others were too. They would be together again.

A victorious, fearful roar flew with the wind. Charlie stopped, uneasy.

That certainly wasn't Nameless. And it certainly was uncomfortably close.

* * *

It was dusk by the time Charlie moved forward through the forest; the smell of fear, grass, water and recently removed earth joined to give away the place of the struggle, near the riverside. Far away she could hear the dismayed cries of the flat bills, but apart from that, it was completely silent; too much, unnervingly silent.

She slowed down as she approached; she picked the scent of saliva and blood, and a familiar, menacing aroma mixed in. The one she smelled on the concrete place.

And suddenly, a crack; like branches snapping.

It was bones. Bones being crushed.

She flattened her body as close to the ground as she could; tall reeds grew on the river banks, and she kept herself hid among them. Her legs and sides ached, the wound on her leg became a stabbing pain, but she didn't dare to stand. She crawled like a lizard…

And a deep growl froze her on place.

She could barely see through the stems, but she could make out the bulk of the flat-bill's body.

The menacing stench floated around, buzzing inside Charlie's head like the cloud of flies that surrounded the corpse.

Still, she was hungry. That alone numbed her fears, and made the unattended corpse more appealing.

She dared a little more forward, ready to sprint: it was a relatively short distance, just enough for her injured leg to endure. A quick bite, then a dash back to the woods. Easy.

She prepared, tensing her muscles.

A giant, three-toed foot stomped in front of her.

She slowly looked up. A bulky muzzle, sopping with blood raised above the reeds, bathed in the red light of sunset. A pair of nostrils sniffed loudly, and a warning growl erupted from jaws with dagger-like teeth, protruding from the upper jaw.

From where Charlie was standing, the massive body blocked the light: it was just a big, black mass, outlined in golden and red.

It was even bigger than Nameless, or so Charlie thought.

She forgot all intention of getting closer. She forgot her hunger, too.

The head of the giant violently turned towards her. Two amber orbs fixed on the raptor.

Charlie felt her heart skipping a beat.

Monstrous jaws opened in a deafening roar, as the earth shook under the beast's feet: a very familiar scenario, of which Charlie didn't want to know the end.

The raptor used her whole body to escape: hind legs, paws and all, pulling her forward through the bushes, sure that it was her final day on the earth. She didn't stop to realize that the monster actually wasn't chasing her, content with driving the intruder off, until she was back under the cover of a tight group of trees nearby.

Charlie's body hurt every nerve it had, making the young raptor wail. Then she heard the growl coming from the riverside, and reduced her yelps to a scared, shy whine.

Sundown fell on the island silently as a hungry, sore raptor cowered among the ferns, licking from time to time a reopen wound, fearful of the monsters the world was apparently full of.


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Better than nothing.

* * *

Night was a time to fret for all animals, since the beginning of time, and that included dinosaurs; or at least, those dinosaurs that were not raptors.

Under the cover of darkness, merciless eyes punctured the shadows, fixed on their prey; deadly claws moved silently, and avid jaws sunk in the flesh of unsuspecting victims that died without knowing what struck them down.

One could wonder what these terrible, relentless killers would think seeing one of their descendants cowering under some shrub, afraid of the things that lurked beyond its sight.

Charlie shifted on her improvised refuge; her senses enhanced by fear, she was able to not jump at the slightest sound only because she was injured.

She was positive the monster was still out there… and worst: it knew she was out there as well.

Once again, her sisters came to mind; specially her eldest, fearless one.

Since Charlie remembered, the big, blue-striped body was always between her and anything harmful or scary.

While Charlie retreated, wary at the noisy vehicles, Blue received them ready, or rather eager to fight, a vicious snarl from her throat; while Charlie stayed among the paddock's vegetation, Blue always stood where everyone could see her; it had been Blue who almost pulled the screaming human through the gate's bars, to show her sisters to not be afraid of them, of how easily one could be killed.

And when it came to alpha, Owen, barking orders from high above, it depended on Blue, and Blue's mood only, if the pack obeyed or not.

Blue could be despicable too, sometimes. She frequently bit the others, only because she could, to remind them she was at command; she often claimed the prey for her, having her caught it or not: Charlie was always eager to yield hers, if that kept her sibling from scolding her.

If there was something Blue wanted, and the others had, she would take it, by claw and tooth. And she was deadly short on patience.

Blue sure knew how to be terrible.

But also, she was always the firm, warm body huddling besides Charlie on her sleep. She was the comforting purr under the shade of trees, when the sun was too hot. She was the loving licking and playful biting. She was the harsh, but patient teacher and hunt leader.

It was easy to be brave when Blue was around.

But she wasn't.

Time passed by, stacking over Charlie's head, making hard to keep her eyes open; the soft croon of the river didn't help, either. Her head plunged more than a couple of times, rising suddenly when she heard a rustle of leaves.

Frogs croaked and bats filled the air with thin, transparent wings when sleep finally made the raptor's head slowly set on the ground.

* * *

Charlie winced when the warm light of the sun touched her eyelids. She awoke slowly, yawning deeply and stretching carefully, feeling her body sore. She prepared for the daily routine: warm with the sun, sharpen her claws against a tree, and hope that Echo was in the mood for a sudden ambush…

She rapidly remembered where she was.

Her head turned on every direction, scanning the surroundings. During a long while, silence reigned on the shores. The young raptor gulped, her toe's claws ticking nervously on the ground.

Was it gone? Was it safe to go out?

Her heart was pounding, her eyes quivering in every direction.

She had no business near the river. She had no business anywhere near this territory.

Or so she thought, until she picked the smell of remains from the monster's feast. The metallic perfume of blood was delicious, and the memories of fresh meat made her mouth water.

Slowly, very slowly, she went around the woods and got closer to the reeds, turning her head in every direction, feeling sure that any second she would have to run for her life.

Hoping on one leg.

She finally got to the limits of her cover. After that laid the unknown, the uncertain; probably even death. Luckily for her, the deafening scream of hunger silenced those grim realizations.

She peered out the reeds.

And there was nothing; literally, nothing, not even a limb to sink the fangs in.

She cautiously stepped out to the open, listening to the possible return of the colossus. The scene was everything she expected to be: the grass was flattened under the two giants' weight; here and there the earth was caved in, where a foot made a sharp turn or stomped in rage…

And there was blood. Everywhere.

Charlie sniffed the ground, where an especially large, crimson puddle stood. She licked it out, relishing on the taste of recently shed blood; it was a whole world apart from the disgusting amphibians.

The trace of gore guided her to where the body possibly was, because there was nothing much left of it. Chunks of meat and bone were scattered around, although she expected much more from a killing that large.

Charlie began to eat what she found, uncaring of such petty matters. It surely wasn't a substantial meal, but the flesh was delicious, and she felt strengthened.

She sniffed around to make sure to leave nothing to the buzzards that started to fly on low circles above the place of the killing. Her nose picked the trail of blood going into unknown territory.

Far away, half covered by mist, a high peak towered above abrupt mountains.

* * *

 **Hey guys! Liking the story so far?  
I'd like to thank you all for your reviews and follows, they've been motivating and really useful (I've been reading them, I swear!).  
Now, I've seen some of you are wondering about Blue's whereabouts... well, you just have to wait, because I'm sure gonna tell you what happened to her. Just not yet, ha.  
This chapter is really short, but I used it to have a slightly deeper sight into Charlie's and Blue's relationship. Let's see how this played out.  
By the way, I might have issues publishing every tuesday after this month, but don't worry, I'll keep this going.  
Have a great week, everyone!  
**


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

The Northern Lands.

* * *

The buzzard landed carefully on the flattened grass. Its brethren followed, and soon the whole flock was jumping around with their wings open, cawing at each other, fighting for the thin shreds of flesh along the way. There wasn't really that much to scavenge…

Then a giant, green freak scared them off, charging from the tall grass, snapping deadly jaws. A very unfortunate bird left with a few tail feathers less.

Charlie spat the black quills and snorted at the scavengers. Her traps usually caught her more than one, but now her wounded leg was slowing her down.

She approached the river to drink. Her gut half full, she was now easier, although still alert. She was in such a better mood; she almost didn't grimace when she caught a slippery salamander as lunch. Almost.

She lied down near her last night's bed. She knew she was now entering the further northern lands, and therefore, far away from human reach. That was, at least, one thing less to worry about. Now all it was left was hunger, her wounds, and whatever other monsters were there to face by herself.

The young raptor decided to penetrate further the territory, cautiously, and avoiding the trail filled with the giant's smell: the world was getting even bigger, and she hopped it was so enough to never cross paths with it.

She limped beyond the killing zone, crossing the stream on a low point, and trekked inside the forest, under the attentive gaze of the buzzards that came back to feast on whatever was left.

* * *

From her advantaged point, standing on cornice, Charlie gazed into the canyon. The slope fell precipitously as if cut by a giant axe. She could see the treetops below, and the similarly vertical wall, on the other side of the cliff, all covered in luxurious green. White birds flew the cerulean sky, and a choir of life filled every corner of the universe.

Charlie, smart as she was, was still an animal. She could not appreciate the breathtaking scenery, but that didn't make her insensitive to its effects.

Here, she couldn't perceive anything human. There was no single trace of concrete or steel reek. The air was clean, and rich, invigorating, and besides the other animals, there was a very welcome silence all around. No helicopter blades. No roaring engines. No guns. No humans.

She barked out, calling, hopping to hear her siblings answering. The echo of her call died out, as she tilted her head to hear an answer.

No welcome barks. No friendly chirps.

The raptor kept hiking, fusing with the greenery, becoming a fading outline as she got further and further inside this new land.

* * *

Charlie sneaked silently through the forest, to a sudden stop. The wind had shifted, and she lost the track. She raised her muzzle, sniffing, moving her head side to side, widely, to try and catch back a glimpse.

Noon had come, and the temperature got high. Still, under the tight foliage, humidity and shade kept the earth fresh, allowing the raptor to cover more terrain in a single effort.

Still, all the walking had made Charlie hungry, keener to the slightest hint of food. And few minutes ago, she picked an alluring scent.

Wind took another shift. The raptor's head stopped, catching the lost trace. Charlie moved downhill.

She could hear the constant chirps and caws from the buzzards. A sour scent of guano and other remains surrounded the cliff.

She had never seen a buzzard nesting place before, and at first glance it looked a little too many nests on a very narrow space; then again, she had never been outside her paddock, let alone that further. Maybe it was the norm.

Still, instincts dictated well what to do, and she was intelligent enough to recognize the opportunity.

There was an uproar when the green raptor got out from the foliage; wings flapped and beaks cried when she confidently began to look for the best place to climb.

It wasn't a difficult task: the birds got used to the lack of big predators in the island, and plenty of nests were easy to reach, uncaringly built near the forest floor. The voracious predator began to feast on eggs and chicks, while the upset parents flew around, angrily screeching at the invader.

An especially protective pair dived around the raptor, furiously scratching and pecking her thick hide. It wasn't really painful, but the flapping on her face and the noise was infuriating.

Charlie turned and snapped at them, losing her grip. She clawed desperately, but she couldn't keep her hold on the slippery rocks, falling with a scared yelp. It wasn't that high, and it wasn't even painful… but she landed on a very wide, very thick patch of the bird's waste.

Charlie coughed in disgust. She shook vigorously, her nostrils overwhelmed by the stench.

With her pride more hurt than her body, she got back into the forest.

* * *

Charlie growled in exasperation, as she wallowed on the ferns; the smell of guano seemed to be impossible to get off.

And those noisy, annoying birds…

She rolled on her belly and raised her head, staring at the black birds describing circles on the air. She got a good distance from the cliff before trying to take the excrement off her hide, but that didn't do anything to drive the birds away from her.

She huffed angrily… and realized something.

She remembered the same birds made circles around her paddock each time they fed them. That was how she learned to set traps, knowing the birds would come down to eat the remains of whatever they were eating.

Those buzzards weren't chasing her away. They were signaling the place of a dead animal.

A really big one, if the size of the flock was an indication.

By that point, Charlie was full of carrion, eggs and chicks to feel any interest on a corpse; however, she recognized that a dead animal could potentially feed her for days.

It was curiosity what finally drove her to get up, sniff the air and walk towards the very conspicuous smell.

She had been drawing a mental map of the new territory, fed on landmarks, scents, and her sense of direction and distance. This would prove useful once she was with her pack again.

Although only an animal, Charlie was intelligent enough to experience something akin to joy, imagining a pleased Blue, once she could show her the cliff plenty of nests. Maybe even the carrion she smelled was a prey brought down by the pack.

She barked loudly at the thought, announcing she was really close.

She descended the hillside, through the thick woods, until she reached the valley below. She stopped, tilting her head in confusion.

She came out to some sort of irregular round clear, devoid of grass. In the middle of such sandlot, walls of removed earth, branches and logs rose well taller than Charlie's height. The entire place was littered with bones.

The raptor gave a shrewd growl. Flies clouded around, annoyingly stepping on her eyes and inside her nostrils; buzzards perched everywhere, cawing at her, flapping their wings without taking flight, too stuffed to be bothered with that.

She cautiously walked into the lot, looking everywhere. A couple of massive ribcages, with a generous amount of meat still stuck, caught her attention. She approached carefully, scaring off the stern birds that were feeding on the flesh.

She dared a sniff. Distrust brought to her mind the humans that used to put chemicals in her food from time to time, making her sleepy.

But the meat smelled fine; fresh, even.

She took a bite. It was, indeed, surprisingly fresh.

The emerald raptor walked around, sniffing. Under the smell of meat and removed earth was an aroma that eluded her, but annoying flies and the stubborn scent of guano didn't let her concentrate.

She approached the earth walls. The soil wasn't loose: it was compact, solid even, as if tightly pressed…

A sudden realization came to Charlie's mind. A terrible realization.

She dared a look from atop the walls: they were parapets, surrounding a huge hole dug on the earth.

It wasn't some natural occurrence. That was no crater.

Charlie now didn't need to know the unidentified scent hidden by the guano and flies. She knew it very well.

A thunderous roar came from the forest. Really, really close. The raptor felt the ground quivering.

Charlie shuddered when she was full aware of her foolishness.

She penetrated Death's territory, and trespassed into its very nest.

* * *

 **No notes today guys. Have a great week!  
**


	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**  
Death itself. 

* * *

She turned her head, thinking she misheard. But then it was again, clearer.

It was a bark. A familiar bark. A familiar, much despised bark.

And it was unbelievable close to her nest.

The tyrannosaur turned her great body back, walking heavily. Huge nostrils pulled air, trying to identify the invader; there definitely was the scent of something… but it was really slight. Wind wasn't helping, probably blowing from the carrion-eaters' cliff; all she could smell was bird dung.

But she knew there were slashers around. She drove one away from her prey just the other day. She fought Other One with one of them jumping around, not so long ago. If she didn't rip it apart, was because the fight exhausted her, and it didn't attack her first. Apparently Other One was its foe as well. That time she let it slip.

This time she was going to shred its corpse.

She let out a defiant roar, just so they know who they were invading. Either they beat it, or prepare to fight.

She didn't like the slashers. She didn't like them one bit. Not even their taste.

She darted once the distance was shorter. If her challenge didn't drive them off, she wouldn't let anyone, anything alive.

The tyrannosaur stomped into the lot. Buzzards flew, startled, flapping their wings away from her.

She swept her bulky head around, scanning her home. There was nothing to be seen. No intruder.

The dinosaur walked around, suspicious, sniffing thoroughly. There had been someone near her nest, there was no doubt about it… they even got close to her meal, and probably took a chunk of it…

She huffed, rising her head, snapping her jaws shut.

They were still around. Really close.

* * *

Charlie was too scared to even tremble. She barely had time to make it to the bushes, when the monstrous frame stormed in from the forest. A bipedal, muscular body, at first sight not very different from hers… except by the small, almost atrophied-looking arms, comical hadn't the thick neck bared a monstrous head. Nameless, with all her odd differences, was more or less a recognizable raptor; this thing was a nightmare, a twisted, feverish nightmare.

Charlie's eyes were fixed on the bronzed beast, as it sniffed its turf loudly, looking for the one intruding… looking for her.

It suddenly raised her head, turning towards her. The raptor felt her blood freezing as the amber eyes fixed on her.

She was at striking distance. There was no way she could outrun it.

She shrunk even more under the bushes, hopping desperately it would hid her.

The deafening roar made her ears ring.

* * *

Nothing.

She knew a good roar was more than enough to scare a hiding prey, or a potential foe, for that matter. But apart from the carrion birds, nothing in the bushes moved.

But she knew something was hiding there. She knew it.

She lowered her head, scanning through the ferns and young trees. Her eyesight never was that good, and it had been slowly degrading with time. But if something moved…

She didn't see anything; only an almost uniform patch of vegetation.

Green was all she could see.

* * *

Charlie held her breath, tightening every muscle on her body as the colossal head came closer. She could see the skin to the last wrinkle, to the slightest scar.

She was now undoubtedly sure the eyes saw her… and passed by.

She heard the huff of the nostrils, and even felt the humidity coming from them, as the terrible giant raised her head again.

* * *

Bird dung. She didn't perceive anything else.

The tyrannosaur raised her head, giving a last look into the woods. She was satisfied with the search, but she flexed her arms alternately, now full of accumulated battle lust.

She let out a contemptuous growl. She had a vast territory to patrol, to be bothered by a nosy slasher messing around her nest.

The scare was probably enough to keep them away, but she wanted to be sure they knew the territory was taken.

* * *

Had she been able to do it, Charlie would have sighed, relieved, as she saw the giant body turning away. Her relief lasted, however, until she saw the monster walking backwards to her, lifting its tail high, lowering the rest of its body to the ground.

* * *

The warm stream soaked the bushes and trees behind her, marking them with her scent; she clawed the earth, kicking it backwards to spread it even further. If the prowlers returned, they would find a fresh reminder of who this place belonged to.

The tyrannosaur marked a few places more around, before going back from where she came, to resume her patrolling.

* * *

Weather was nice under the canopies. The deep purr vibrated through the jungle, as if the pleasure it expressed spread on the world.

Life was good. The world was wide.

She walked through the range, confident, as the herds bolted away, silently but no doubt afraid. They knew she was not hunting now, but also that she could pick her choice from their flesh, at any moment.

She ruled the land. She had no challengers. She was Death itself.

She walked to the waterside to drink.

And she heard it. An annoyed huff came out from her nostrils, splashing on the water.

The buzz grew louder, as the grey flying-thing came to sight.

It turned its face towards her, staying on place like a monstrous humming bird. The tyrannosaur raised her head, facing the black, cold gaze with her amber, burning own eyes.

The thing bobbed up and down, like doubting. Then, it turned and flew away, taking its annoying buzz with it.

She let out a disgusted growl. It was just like a huge buzzard… though the buzzards, if annoying, at least groomed her and kept her place clean. The grey flying-thing just followed her stubbornly, and it had ruined a couple of hunts with its noisy wings already.

The mighty dinosaur walked slowly away from the pond, and looked for a fine shade, where she slept the afternoon away.

* * *

 **Hey guys! How's it going?  
** **I have some slightly bad news: my PC just died during the weekend, so I might not be able to upload a new chapter the next week. I will do everything in my hands to have the issue solved through this days, so stay tuned.  
Puting the sad aside, I'd like to thank every one of you guys commenting and reviewing, and following and reading. Really guys, you're so kind and awesome. You should give yourselves a fist bump, since I'm not there to give it myself.  
Keep going guys, and have an amazing weekend. See you around!  
**


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Problems and opportunities.

* * *

The ridge was very low, and it hadn't the protective steep slope or the maze of tunnels the other cave had, but it was wide enough. Probably no one would get close to this territory, anyway.

Charlie stood up, after giving the den a good look. She sniffed around… and winced, perceiving the urine reek coming from her.

She had wallowed in dirt, swam in a nearby creek, and in a desperate attempt, licked her skin thoroughly, but the scent of the monster's pee just wouldn't wash away.

She even missed the smell of guano.

She peered around. The thick forest offered a good hide out for the narrow entrance of her new den, and the trees were close enough to each other to at least slow down a hypothetical, yet very real pursuer.

Now there was the food issue.

After a cautious scouting, the nesting cliff seemed to be the only place with a steady supply; the only one, at least, that the raptor would dare to visit again.

She sat at her den's opening; a deep rumble rose through the jungle, making her turn her head. It sounded far enough, in the nest, but it made her quiver.

Nothing, on heaven or earth, would make her go back to that place.

* * *

The young trumpeter walked through the forest; it was more than justifiably jumpy, having penetrated the dreadful territory; and yet, it had been smart enough to know better than to call the herd.

Unknown to it, golden, avid eyes had been stalking it from a while.

Charlie's talons clicked on the soft soil, as she made a brief stop. The trumpeter was being cautious, and walked slowly, and yet the raptor was having a hard time keeping the pace, due to her limping.

Had the raptors been able to curse, she probably had been doing it from days now; this new territory proved being way worse than her old one. Except for the nesting cliff, there was barely something she could feed on; at least, something she could hunt down, with her injured leg.

The trumpeter got out of sight; Charlie was tired and gasping, her injured leg pulsating.

With a quiet groan, the raptor pushed forward.

The trumpeter sneaked downhill, right towards a discreet stream. The nervous animal looked one way and the other, hesitant in his thirst. A shy front leg stepped out the forest, on the stony river shore; then a second one. In a leap of faith, the dinosaur walked towards the water.

It looked around one more time, before the elongated head would get down enough to take a sip.

Charlie stared at it, as it drank from the stream. She stooped as low as she could, crawling to the very limit of the forest, down the current, anticipating the trumpeter's trail.

There, crouching, she rested, gaining strength for the sprint, and the unavoidable wrestle.

There was uneasiness in her waiting, as her whipping tail revealed. Her prey might been just the size for her to submit with the least struggling possible, but it was still a well-built, healthy animal, while she had lost weight, was slower, and alone.

This better be a quick kill.

The herbivore lifted its head, a clear thread streaming from its mouth, right through its neck. It turned its head up-current, tilting it in curiosity. It let out a call.

Charlie turned on the same direction, and let out an angry, frustrated snarl, when the call was answered, multiple times.

Stomping down the creek, a herd came closer. The young dinosaur ran to their encounter.

A mixed group: flat bills and trumpeters stuck together; the flat bills benefitted from the smaller dinosaur's keen senses, and the trumpeters relied on their bigger counterparts to keep predators at bay.

Charlie knew that. And also, that her slim chances to get fresh meat were now reduced to nothing.

She would have to be on her way…

The herd seemed suddenly uneasy, tightening their formation. The animals grew suddenly silent, although they hastened their pace. The big heads turned on every direction, the brown orbs open wide.

Charlie tilted her head; did they smell her? There was no way she could be the source of this worry.

Focused on the animals, Charlie didn't notice the changing lights filtering through the canopies, like a cloud blocking the sun and then passing by.

A known scent hit her nose; a low rumble vibrated on her ears.

She looked back uphill. A large shadow moved through the trees, dissembled by the tree trunks and hanging vegetation. It was amazing how something that big could be so silent, so invisible… the fact that it just stalked right behind without her noticing was terrifying.

The herd recognized the danger, though they didn't were sure what was happening. Their only response was to move forward, storming down the river, and their stomping echoing through the woods.

The earth shook when the giant darted from its cover, right behind the fleeing dinosaurs. Preys and predator went out of sight behind a curtain of trees, where the stream took a narrow turn. The screams of the panicking animals rose from beyond.

Charlie was breathing fast, an anxious hiss on her throat.

Something on her was shaking, an ancient thing inside her being, older than her, infinitely older. It was a basic wiring on her brain, bounded to her genes; the instinct that linked her with her ancestors, millions of years ago.

Despite her fear of the giant, or her limp leg, the cries and smell of fear lured her on the same direction of the chase.

Hunt was on.

She ran as quickly as she could, still under cover of the vegetation, towards the carnage.

* * *

The flat-bill stood its ground, bellowing fiercely. Standing on all fours, its tail whipping the air, it was hard to believe it was afraid, or even wounded. It would have been an imposing sight for anyone. But Death fretted no one.

The tyrannosaur answered the challenge with her own furious roar. She plunged forward, biting on the smaller dinosaur's loin; she pulled upwards, lifting the whole body, and then violently turned to the side, crashing the animal against the trees.

The trunks creaked by the impact; the flat-bill lay on its side, kicking desperately, trying to get on its feet as its killer approached.

Leaning against the trees, it raised, just in time to deliver a resonant lash on the predator's snout.

She hesitated mere seconds, before her raging jaws closed fiercely, engulfing the animal's chest, pressing the body against the ground with irresistible force.

The predator shook the body like a ragdoll, tightening the grip.

When she stopped, the other dinosaur's body was limp. It was over.

She let go of her prey, and raised her head on a triumphant, powerful roar.

Had Charlie been able to do it, she would have gaped in awe and fear.

She witnessed the killing, claws spreading and clenching alternately, jumping around nervously. She shrunk at the roar, but the smell of blood and fear overwhelmed her own misgiving. Now she looked how the carnivore held the prey down with one of its feet, while the massive jaws ripped great chunks off the body; it shook its head to reduce the pieces even more, spreading gore around a really wide area before swallowing.

It was a messy task, and the raptor immediately knew that she could get something out of the killing... if she somehow managed to get closer.

Charlie's eyes widened when, after a while, the giant clenched its maw around the body, and lifted it off the ground.

* * *

There was someone in the woods. She just couldn't put her finger on whom.

She sniffed loudly, scanning the nearby bushes. She didn't feel threatened: she could not sniff anything meaningful beyond the fresh meat; she could smell, however, her own marking, tough the familiar scent didn't trigger any response.

Still, she didn't like something lurking just out of her senses' reach; especially with yet-to-heal wounds, and slashers around.

She secured the grip on her prey, still gazing to the woods, and growled a warning. After few moments, she turned, going back to her nest.

* * *

It walked down along the shore, then back to the forest with the mangled remains of the flat-bill dangling from its jaws. The young raptor couldn't wrap its mind around something so massive, lifted with so little effort, seeing the body of the herbivore, belittled by the might of its killer.

Once the heavy stomping was silent, and the killer's scent got lost, Charlie finally focused on a more urgent matter.

She trotted downhill, to rescue the spoils of the battle. Buzzards were already circling the place, never too far from the mighty predator's path.

Now Charlie understood why there was so little to scavenge the first time she encountered the monster; except for some bloody shreds, the whole dinosaur was now on its way to the giant's nest.

As she pulled upwards with her jaws, her claws firmly holding a leathery scrap, the raptor's mind began to work.

Any animal could be big, have claws, sport fangs and thick hides. But raptors had a prodigious advantage: a great intelligence. They probably couldn't plan much ahead than a few days, but they remembered and associated concepts way better than any human could imagine. Charlie had inherited those traits, and she was putting them to good use.

The meat's taste was already tracing new connections in her mind; after many days of hunger and uncertainty, the only times she was able to properly meal had been after her encounters with the territory's owner. The sense of danger was still there, undeniably, but underneath laid an abstract sense of opportunity: she now knew there was a link between the monster and relatively easy food, but she was not sure how to make the most of it. But there was potential for more. Much, much more.

Charlie slowly walked back to her new cave, her brain full of thoughts.

She curled around; her eyes still open a good while in contemplation, as she planned. Her memory even barely pointed her sisters.

Nothing on heaven or earth would make her go back to that place.

Unless…

* * *

 **Ah-HA! There was a chapter after all!  
I've started to do this the old fashioned way: pen and paper. It's messy and slow, but I'm gonna keep this little tale of mine going. I had a PC burrowed so... yeah, here we go.  
Now, I'd like to do something I wanted to do since a while ago: vsama, little Charlie, Mad Library Scientist, Guest, Six Foot Turkey, Jelsemium, an, Commando 64, juti, hellraven-ovo, The Prime Writer, ****EvilReceptionistOfDoom, JadeyWeb, Disneysaurus and Maddy R, I'd like to thank you all mightily (is that even a word?) for your reviews and support. You guys are awesome.  
** **And for anyone I forgot to mention (or followed or favorite me anonimously) I also want to thank you greatly (again, is that a word?) you rock, boys and girls!  
Well, see you around. Have an amazing week!**


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Baby steps.

* * *

The area around the giant's nest was surrounded by hills and steep cliffs; the flatter, gradual trail downwards gave access to the grazing fields, and the southern regions of the island.

Charlie spent several days exploring the most abrupt summits; limp and all, she was still pretty good at climbing and hiking, if only slower than she used to be.

Her efforts were rewarded by a well hid, stony look-out, well above the valley and with an excellent view of the buzzard-infested lair.

And from there, she started to peek. To learn.

Right before sunrise, back from that night's excursion, Charlie sat on her shady cornice, looking down to the giant's home.

Raptors were very good with association and patterns. Learning the monster's routine proved really easy for the keen animal.

With the first light of the sun, the giant would leave the nest, shaking the cold off its body, and announce its presence with an echoing roar.

Oddly enough, Charlie associated this behavior with that of her own kind. Blue used to bark early, right after waking up, and Charlie, Echo and Delta immediately answered with their own call; it was an instinctual action to acknowledge each other, a greeting, but it also let other creatures know that was raptor territory: it delimited the pack's turf. Charlie assumed the monster's roar served the same purpose.

The sound of the jaws crushing bones echoed through, bouncing on the cliffs' walls, making the young raptor wince. She and her sisters used to gnaw on bones too, and sometimes broke them to get the marrow; but they did it using their claws and feet to pry, while this creature basically ate them whole; and they were thick, hard bones from another giants. If Charlie fell in that maw, her fragile body would be like munching on a snail.

The giant marked the outskirts of its nest, and finally went on patrolling, followed by a faithful flock of buzzards, and leaving the place unguarded; Charlie knew it would remain like that at least until sunset.

The chances of going down, taking what she could and leave before the owner of the nest came back was already in the raptor's mind, but she preferred being cautious. The giant was on shape, knew the terrain and, even when it wasn't able to find her, it was aware of the invader's presence. As the huge body faded into the woods, hidden by the canopies, Charlie left her look-out to get some sleep.

If the monster kept its routine, it would come back, sometimes with prey in its jaws, well past sunset. It would take a bite, roar again to reassure its domain, and then sit on the nest to sleep.

Sometimes, the large dinosaur would come back amidst the darkness of the night, but it mostly slept the lightless hours. Charlie took good notice of that.

If she was going to try something, it had better be done under the cover of the night.

* * *

The tyrannosaur growled, annoyed. She knew she was being observed; she could smell a faint scent of danger, and a surreptitious instinct told her something was stalking beyond her reach.

She didn't like it.

What unnerved the dinosaur was how difficult it was to sense the intruder. She was able to smell the herds from her nest, all the way to the fields; she could smell even the place where she used to be caged, where she fought Other One, and the salty perfume of the lagoon. Nothing was beyond her senses, except this odd thing that just dimly smelled like slasher…

And surely, by this moment, it would be nosing around her nest, feeding from her hunt.

The dinosaur huffed. Even with her frustration, she wouldn't mind it that much yet. Whoever this spy was, it couldn't be much of a challenger like Other One. If it were anything more than a measly scavenger, it would have made its presence noticed by now.

Nothing that could kill her would hide.

There was a wide range to patrol ahead, and plenty of hunting to do; the tyrannosaur's mind shifted to the scent of the flat-bills, grazing near the pond.

* * *

Charlie stretched thoroughly. Sunset was upon, and the shadows of the jungle had begun to grow larger, the greens and yellows slowly turning gold and red, before engulfing the world in the pale blue of the night.

The young raptor scratched under her lower jaw, preparing for that night's excursion. She was feeling hungry; given enough stealth, she would probably be able to snatch more than a couple of eggs from the nesting cliff. Maybe even a sleepy, adult bird.

A distant rumble caught her attention. She hurried back to the cornice, just in time to see the arrival of the giant to its nest. Her eyes widened at what she saw.

* * *

The heavy body hit the ground with a low thud. The tyrannosaur sighed, relieved from the heavy burden.

She walked slowly away from her prey… or rather, her trophy. That wasn't a hunt she was planning. It had been a rough day.

All the large body ached, every muscle twitching with exhaustion; reopened wounds bled profusely, as new ones promised of scars that would be on her skin until the end of her days. The enormous heart was pounding, struggling to keep its owner alive.

Not everyone yielded to Death. Some of them would take a chance against it.

The massive head and tail hanging low, the dinosaur finally reached her nest. Even climbing the low walls proved a mighty challenge, and instead of the usual turning around, the giant just let herself slip inside tiredly.

She sighed again, looking at the huge bulge of her former rival. The long horns shun at the dimming light, the frill broken but still imposing, and the beak mid-open, stained with blood.

It wasn't the first three-horned she killed, but she didn't remember it being that hard before. She was not, by far, a young one anymore.

The brave grazer gave one hell of a fight. A nasal horn had pierced the inside of her thigh, but it didn't hurt as much as the bite on the same leg's calf. Three-horned were actually vicious biters, all the most when they felt their lives at stake; she was lucky the hard beak hadn't broken her bone.

The corpse would feed her a good while; the same amount of time she would need to heal, and regain strength only to get up and walk around again.

But she was built for battle. The wounds would take a pretty short time to heal, and her strength would come back sooner than even she expected. Old and all, she descended from a lineage of fighters; the kings of all beasts.

The tyrannosaur take a last look at the dead three-horned. Her heart had begun to beat normally again, the air no more burning her throat. Her eyes slowly closed, allowing her to sleep.

* * *

Charlie gulped, shifting on her feet.

Seeing the mighty monster lifting a whole flat-bill was one thing; as much as big the herbivore was, the monster was bigger. Witnessing as it dragged the hulking corpse of the much dreaded three-horned between its legs, almost as big as the killer itself, was something just beyond her understanding.

The creature had to be, indeed, Death itself.

She stared attentively, her fore claws flexing anxiously. The body could be more eloquently than any call, and all in the monster's silent language spoke of tiredness. Probably even agony.

So maybe even Death could die.

The mere thought was stinging the raptor's brain. The prey was left on the outskirts of the lot. Maybe far enough…

* * *

Night wrapped around the jungle as Charlie approached the much feared limits of the nest. Her head turned at every sound, her body trembling. The night was too much clear for her liking, the moon high in the sky, shining pale like a skull.

Even before making out the black outline of the three-horned's body, she could smell the blood and the remaining scent of rage and fear from the animal. Even though she knew it was dead, she still shivered at the aroma of the dreadful colossus.  
Charlie approached the corpse diagonally, so she could have the nest on sight as she drew closer. The silhouette of the monster shun grayish under the stars, and the raptor could hear the heavy breathing even though she was a good distance away.  
She finally made it to the body. She was a ball of nerves, shaking in anticipation, triumph and fear, all at once. She gave a last look at the nest; heavy shadows crept on the killer's skull, hiding the eye sockets.

* * *

The two iridiscent orbs fixed on her for few seconds, before dissapearing behind her trophy. She even had a glimpse of a sleek body sneaking through the shadows, like wind.

The tyrannosaur was well awake, immobile, expectant. Her heart was throbbing in the back of her ears, her muscles flinching, trying to get her on her feet. She was, however, exhausted.  
And at the mercy of whatever was lurking in the shadows.  
A bitter anger stung from her throath. The moment one of them get too close to bite her, she was going to chew and spit it well above the trees. She still had enough on her to at least do that.  
Her blood froze when the sneaky silhouette appeared again, on the opposite side of the three-horned.  
The moon outlined the sinuous body of the slasher.

* * *

Charlie's hearth was racing. She knew she was under the moonlight, on the brightest side of the lot. Her eyes were quivering crazily in their sockets, her head jerking one side and the other, like a bird's: to the sleeping giant, then to the corpse, then to the moon, then to the giant again...

She sniffed the meat in front of her. Gave a last look at the giant...

* * *

The tyrannosaur winced at the sudden motion. The slasher's head plunged forward, and then yanked up again, pulling.

She heard a ripping sound as the long head came up; she saw a big, bleeding chunk of meat dangling under the bright eyes that once again fixed on her.  
And all of a sudden, it was gone, darting back to the shadows silently, leaving behind a confused, upset dinosaur.

* * *

A pleasant feeling filled her, the simple, animal equivalent of joy. She did it! She actually did it!

She left herself fall at her cave's stony entrance. She was gasping, and trembling, frightened and happy. The meat slipped out from her jaws, and she looked at it: it was bigger than she remembered, as she was only worry to get out from there alive.  
She sank her teeth on the flesh, holding it with her fore claws and pulling. Who would have know that three-horned tasted that good?  
Night was clear and perfect to roam, but the raptor crawled into her cave, her stomach full and her heart at ease, and she quickly fell asleep.

* * *

 **No notes today. Have a great week, everyone!**


	10. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Bird of bad omen

* * *

The sun climbed over the dented summits of the mountain range, a gleaming eye peering from above inky, towering masses. At the same time, two other amber orbs hid behind heavy eyelids, after a restless night.  
The tyrannosaur finally collapsed, defeated by exhaustion; the burdensome head tilted, leaning on the border of the nest, snorting loudly; her mind gladly forgot about slashers lurking in the darkness and slipped into a much needed, pleasant dream.

* * *

Charlie shook off, stretching and yawning wide. It had been the best night she had for a while, and it showed in everything around her: the colors seemed brighter, the air more fresh, the sounds of nature a subtle croon.  
The raptor sniffed back at the inside of the cave: there was still little remains of her last night's adventure. She devoured what was left and walked into the forest with bouncy, satisfied strides.

Muffled she could hear distant calls from the herds to the south. Air was chill, damped, a slight mist drifting about, softening the contours of things, blending trees and ferns and a green striped raptor into a sort of blurred, dream-like painting.  
Charlie lie down, idle. The humid air mingled with the sour scent of the nesting cliff, which little by little began to spring to life.  
Still without much hunger, a whole day ahead, Charlie decided to watch the birds on their den, maybe finally catch one now that they were still stiff and unaware.  
However, she ended up paying a lot more attention to their behavior.

There was something oddly familiar to the buzzards. Though there was a gap of millions of years of evolution, Charlie was somewhat related to the feathered creatures, and she could recognize traits similar to her own on the birds.  
It was not as if she could understand them; ironically, despite being advanced descendants from the same ancestors, buzzards were very primitive to Charlie. They didn't communicate like she and her sisters did, but the raptor could understand crude, partial meanings: a certain call and body language were something like a salute, another combination a warning, another one yet a cry for food... there were no nuances, nor the subtle variations of raptor language.  
A rude, noisy caw would mean danger, but would not put a name on the known intruder approaching fast to the cliff.  
The raptor took a small jump; she couldn't jump much higher yet, but she didn't need to.  
The helpless bird flapped her only free wing in a puny effort to keep itself alive. Charlie ended it up with a single shake of her head.  
The dinosaur dissapeared into the mist, leaving behind a trail of black feathers and crude, shrill cries.

* * *

The young raptor peered from above, on her look-out. She rubbed her muzzle with her foreclaw, then scratching her gums and between her teeth. There were still quills stuck; buzzards were good and tender, but they were almost all feathers.  
Down in the lot, the monster remained still on its belly, a thick flock of black birds on and around it; Charlie wondered if it was already dead.  
A shake of the great body sent the buzzards flying, dissipating the raptor's doubts.

* * *

The tyrannosaur growled annoyed, as she shook the insolent birds from her loin. Some of them had started to nip on the fresh wounds, deeming the dinosaur dead. She was far from that.  
Sleep had regained her some strenght, and the mighty head raised proudly, surrounded by a cloud of flies. She turned to one side of the nest, where a row of the carrion eaters had perched, their black, button-like eyes staring in expectancy, as if pondering when the giant would expire.  
She snorted at them, knocking them off with the very strenght of the air from her nostrils.  
Annoying little buggers.  
The birds retreated, flying around and filling the air with an upheaval of wings and shrill voices. The flock flew around for a hile, until it sat down around the nest, giving the giant a wide, respectful distance.  
The tyrannosaur shifted on her hest, huffing. The great mouth gaped in a yawn, and snapped shut: does this look alive enough?  
Yet, the obnoxious bird's amazement lasted little, and several of them started closer to the nest, jumping with their wings open, clumsily climbing the sides of the structure. One of them finally reached the top. The dinosaur's eye fixed on the feeble spot, mere feet from her. The bird walked fearlessly towards her, with the pompous stride of their kind, when they weren't bouncing around like idiots.  
It let out an almost demanding call. The tyrannosaur opened her jaws, plunging towards the bird...

* * *

Buzzards weren't the brightest creatures, but this particular one had to be the dumbest of them all.  
Charlie even flinched when the bird stretched its neck, getting its head right into the giant's jaws. She was waiting for the swift decapitation, and her surprise was great when it not only didn't came, but then the reckless birds jumped forward.  
Right into the open maw. And nothing happened.  
The raptor stared, flabbergasted. A second bird came flying, and landed not very carefully on the opposite ridge of the lower jaw.  
Charlie tilted her head several times, trying to figure out what was going on. A third bird was peering behind the upper from teeth, right at the dinosaur's mouth ceiling. All the while, the careless birds were cawing a sort of caw Charlie had never heard before.  
The tyrannosaur closed her eyes. The sharp little talons kind of tickled her tongue and gums, but it was bearable. At least until she regained her full strenght, she would have to endure the bird's services to clean between her teeth... even if the same servants couldn't wait to feast on her carcass.  
A distant thumping came by, carried by the wind. The birds, at perceiving it, flew from the giant's mouth, cawing in distress.  
The tyrannosaur tilted her head, as the buzzing came closer. She growled when she recognized it.  
A sudden breeze shook the trees with a loud flapping. Charlie ran and hid under the thick canopies; she knew the one thing that could do that sound.  
The gray, flying thing appeared from above, over the trees. The wind from its wings made a whirlwind that sent the birds crashing around, desperately trying to escape the crossed winds.  
Its cold gaze stood on the tyrannosaur, its body bobbing up and down, suspended in the air.  
It was closer than ever, lifting an irritant cloud of dust from the lot. It even came closer, probably boldened by the tyrannosaur's passiveness.  
But it would only last that long.  
Her surprise was replaced by anger at the challenge. Forgetting all about injuries and tiredness, a hot pain going throught her body, she stood up and roared: a terrible, long thunder, as loud if not louder than the sound of the machine's blades.  
The invader pulled back, astoniched. The black, huge eyes remained void of expression, but the dinosaur percieved the thing's fear.  
It carefully turned around and left.  
The dinosaur slowly crumbled into her nest, gasping.  
Annoying, reckless little bugger.

* * *

Charlie crawled back inside her cave, waiting for the night, undecided on what was more upsetting: the humans reaching that far, or living next to the only thing that could push them back.

* * *

 **Hi guys, how's it going?  
Work just kicked me in the shin and I couldn't post last night. This is probably going to be an issue on the future, but fret not: the story continues.  
** **hellraven-ovo: one just could wonder... what would happen now that Rexy is aware of that? Dun dun DUUUUUUNNN!  
Tess: I loved the raptors too. Hope I keep delivering quality for you ;D  
MaddyR: Talk about timing huh? I hope you had an awesome birthday!  
Sondering: At least until her leg gets better... or Rexy get her.  
Disneysaurus: All dinosaurs go to heaven ;)  
Slick: Believe me, there's more things to come!  
** **Once again, thank you for your reviews guys, you're awesome! I hope the story is not getting too slow, is just that I like to set a mood. But I assure you, there are some action coming.  
Have a great week, everyone!**


	11. Chapter 10

**WARNING: this chapter contains the depiction of dinosaur entrails. Is not violent, but can get a little gross. You have been warned.**

* * *

 **Chapter 10**

Misstep

A call came from the bushy outskirts of the cliff. A bunch of the buzzards turned their heads to the sound, curious. It was un famliar, but it kind of sounded like the call they made when finding food.  
But then again, it came from the forest, far from the relative safety of the cliff, into the dark unknown. And most of them knew what lurked under the thick canopies.  
The call sounded again, more urgent, now barely recognizable as the voice of one of them. The response was a nervous flap of wings, and several calls of danger from the lower nests. But no bird moved from its place.

Charlie curled her lips, her tail lashing in frustration.  
Lately the birds had learned mistrust, and the nests that used to be on the most reachable ridges of the cliff were now abandoned, the chicks and eggs long ago devoured or left to starve.  
She had underestimated the birds' intelligence. Now she had to push hers further.  
Like some birds, raptors had a complex vocal ability, that allowed them to communicate on a level far over most of the creatures that shared their world; and when need required so, the intelligence to stretch their skills towards unexpected uses.  
Charlie now knew several of the birds' calls, and some of the correspondent answers: the ones she was interested in, however, were those that gathered the birds on one point.  
The raptor focused once more, shifting on her feet. She let out a series of sharp, high chirps, similar to those from the chicks in distress. It wasn't, of course, a perfect mimic, but it lured the buzzard's attention. That was all she needed.  
She held her breath when one of them flew and landed out from the cliffs sight, into the jungle. A few feet from where she crouched...

The bird took a couple of hesitant steps forward, tilting its head, inquiring into the vegetation around. Instinct had lured it away from its nest, and towards the dangerous forest, driven by the cries from a possibly fallen hatchling.  
Now it was silent. Too silent.  
There was a rustling of leaves. The bird never knew when the jaws closed on its head.  
Weird, how such creatures could wander around Death so confidently and unharmed. The feeble animal was enough for a snack. Enough, at least, until night came, and she could make another incursion into the giant's nest.

* * *

Night was fresh, but dry:a relieving combination for her throbbing wounds. The tyrannosaur sighed, glad to be out from the scourching sun. Had she been healthier, she would have spent the afternoon on the muddy banks of the lagoon, maybe even swim in its fresh water... but right now, even the thought of standing up felt like fangs on her flesh...  
Darkness was upon. The fangs could get very real.  
She eyed the three-horned carcass. She had barely ate from it, too tired and concerned to feel hunger; her foe, however, had feasted on it, and its scent was all over the place now, upseting the old dinosaur.  
Was it going to be tonight? Was it going to end it?  
One thing was sure: she would not go down without a fight.

* * *

Charlie walked silently through the dark forest, alert but confident. These days of good food and rest made wonders for her, and the raptor now remembered something rooted deep inside her genes: night was her element.

Still, she knew better than to be all bouncy when she got closer to the outskirts of the lot.  
The sun had started to inflate the body, and the unmistikable scent of decay had started to fill the air around it; for Charlie, the sharp reek was a delicate perfume.  
She approached the now familiar gap she had made into the dead colossus: a hole, barely enough for her to get through, that gave access to the delicate entrails, that seemed as if they were never to run off, so little did she needed, and so little had the rightful owner ate.  
Fine times these were indeed, that she was starting to grow bored of the liver's taste.  
She plunged voraciously into the open belly, sniffing around; she had became picky, and that night she was all for a bite of the blackened, heavy heart.  
But it was not easy to reach, and she had to get inside the body to get the treat... not noticing the shadow growing larger over the dead dinosaur.  
Enthralled as she was with the taste, she didn't notice the dangerous aroma under the carrion's scent; and surrounded by thick muscle and hide, she couldn't hear the growling going around the body...  
Until it moved, as if it were still alive.  
The roar went through flesh and bone, clear to the raptor's ear. The monster was awake!

* * *

The tyrannosaur rammed her head against the three-horned, growling in anger. Her sleep had lightened these days, and that night she percieved the intruder coming.  
Her body still ached, but she would not sleep until the threat was gone. She would not stop until the invader was dead.  
A furious foot raised on the air, hitting the body with tremendous might. Had the three-horned been alive, it would have wailed in pain for its broken ribs.

* * *

Charlie hissed in panic, hearing the bones cracking, allaround quaking.  
She turned around, to the hole; she had to run inot the forest! She had to make it to the short spaced trees...!  
The dim light that came from the hole went black, the darkness filled with warm air and a terrible thunder; at the other side of her way out, Charlie was staring at the gaping jaws of Death.  
Another hit, another shake, another roar, another bone cracking; the raptor slipped, loosing her foot, falling over the entrails and blood she had been feasting on during days.  
The feast that now will become her tomb.

* * *

The tyrannosaur went around the body. It was too close to the trees, and they didn't allow her to move freely and use her whole strenght. She needed to move the body to the open.  
She bit the wide loin, pulling. It didn't move. She moved to the head, hooking the frill with her fore claws, biting again; her legs pushed backwards, feet sinking in the earth, feeling nothing but the effort on her worn off muscles.  
And suddenly, progress.  
The huge body moved, shifting slightly, getting on its belly as she dragged it to the open; her arms might had looked atrophiated, but they were decievingly strong, bulging as she pulled back.

* * *

The raptor inside the dead body clawed frantically to stand, as everything around her shivered ans shook. The little light she had dissapeared, and she found herself turning and twisting in the darkness, along and amidst dinosaur guts.  
Unreal, how the very thing she craved for was now about to kill her; the entrails were all around her, slippery and asphixiating. The raptor gasped, trying to get some air from beneath the mess of intestines that were now swallowing her.  
Then a sudden stop. Silence.  
Charlie clawed her way to the top of the gelatinous wave, holding to the solid, exposed ribs.  
A shake. A roar. An exhasperated growl.

* * *

She gasped, her old heart thumping.  
Just a minute. She only needed a minute.  
The great body now laid at the end of a long ditch, out in the open lot. She rammed it again, frustrated.  
She was tired. So tired. Too much to rip the body apart, as she was planning to do.  
But there was no way the intruder would get away. Not after this.  
She hadn't had a good night of sleep for days. Another one should not be that bad.  
The tyrannosaur sat next to the corpse, her eyes fixed on it.  
She had all night.

* * *

 **Stay tuned for the final chapter, in which Charlie is devoured.  
Just kidding, you guys...(OR AM I?)  
How's life going?**  
 **I'm sorry I couldn't post last week, it had been crazy on the job, and I hadn't time to do a lot of things.**  
 **MaddyR: About thaaaaaaaat... let's just say we will know about Blue in a couple chapters more.**  
 **Tess: Thank you! I'm doing my best, and there's still more coming.**  
 **Jelsemium: You can't imagine how much I appreciate you take time to point out those little things, seriously! Thanks a lot for the heads up, I will correct it as soon as I can. I also remember that you made a review before, but I don't know what happened to it. I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far!**  
 **Anyway guy, thank you for your support, you're all awesome!**  
 **Have an awesome week!**


	12. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**  
Close and Personal

* * *

Sun was shining unusually angry by noon.

The heavy fog of the morning was less than a memory right now, and the heat lifted waves from the dry lot where the tyrannosaur nested **.**

She could feel the vicious lash of the midday burning her skin, the long tongue hanging limp from her jaws as she panted.

But she was stubborn. She hadn't taken her eyes from the corpse all night, and she surely had no intention of doing so until she was sure she would no longer be threatened.

With her wounds, the heat, the sleeplessness and ache, the dinosaur was having a really bad time.

Slightly better, however, than the one inside the rotting corpse.

* * *

Charlie was breathing hardly, as the air on the inside of the giant body got heavier; the aroma of rotten flesh stopped being alluring a long while ago, and now the raptor felt dizzy for the overwhelming stench.

In her desperation, she clawed the thick flesh, trying to rip open the corpse from the inside, but the slippery gore beneath her didn't allow her to get a good stand, and the blows with her fore claws and her kicks were hesitant, and barely made any damage on the brute.

Unfortunately, the noise she made attracted unwanted attention.

* * *

The ruler of the northern lands circled the body, lowering her head to pick better at the scratching sounds.

She gave the corpse one decisive push with her muzzle, growling. The next hit wasn't so gentle.

The scratching stopped.

She rammed the body once more, violently. The dead dinosaur shifted its weight, falling over its side, revealing the belly and the hole that the scavenger had dug into.

* * *

Charlie slipped again as the corpse shook, shifting. She lifted her head from the suffocating mess, and the hit of fresh air and light took her by surprise. Now the raptor was able to see the lot and the safety of the forest once again. And a giant, three-clawed foot standing on her way.

There was a new shake, a crunching sound, and Charlie felt how the space around her tightened and shivered.

* * *

The tyrannosaur held the body firmly under her talon; the mighty jaws plunged forward, sinking into the flesh and then pulling back.

The taste made the giant suddenly aware of how hungry she had been, and she swallowed the chunk gladly, although feeding wasn't her purpose.

She intended to do what she should have done since the beginning: rip the body apart, and get to the trespasser.

* * *

Charlie could hear the flesh being torn apart, and the angry growls as the monster shook its head to pull out the flesh from the bone. A light beam shun through a thinner and thinner membrane of flesh, until it flooded the inside with light.

A golden, fiery eye was peering from the other side.

The raptor cowered in the still dark corner of her refuge, her mind racing. The body would not last longer.

Another light beam went through, larger than the last one.

Charlie dared a peek through the hole from where she entered. The giant's foot was firmly planted in front of her, buzzards starting to jump around, cawing and pecking on the leftovers.

There was a crack. Charlie turned around to see the blue sky, in the place where one rib used to be. The huge muzzle of the monster got in, nostrils flaring, sniffing.

She gave another look outside. If she could outrun it, only until to the forest…

Another crack. The jaws were closer, pointing at her.

Charlie gave a hiss: the last, desperate warning of a creature that sees coming her last moments. The jaws half opened with a growl, the huge tongue sticking out, searching like a blind, slimy python.

Charlie pulled back, hissing, curling her lips; she peered out once again, ready to sprint.

She saw a buzzard just outside, next to the giant foot.

The bird came closer, and unworriedly started to peck under the very scales of the monster, looking for a treat, without even a flinch.

The raptor felt something touching her. She reacted.

Her claw delivered a good blow, feeling the sticky saliva and the warm blood flowing from the wound. The terrible maw pulled back suddenly, a thunderous roar filling the air.

There was no more time to doubt. The precious seconds won boldened the raptor, and she plunged forward, through the hole, on the ground, to the forest…

Brushing against the giant foot.

* * *

Instinctively, the tyrannosaur kicked, almost tripping over, when she felt something rubbing against its foot. She felt something small, and saw a body projected to one side, on the corner of her eye.

She sharply turned on that direction, ready to attack. She let out a raging roar, her muzzle dripping blood: part of it from the cut on her tongue, part of it from the corpse.

Her gaze stopped on a greenish, feeble spot, shrinking at the edge of the forest.

* * *

Charlie was frozen. No bone was broken, but the kick sent her flying a good distance. She could have just stood up and ran.

It was her fear what kept her frozen on place.

The monster was approaching, piercing her with its golden eyes; the roar had loosened all her muscles, and no nerve in her body was willing to obey. Looking at it at the distance made her forget how terrible, how frightening it really was.

So this was how it was going to be.

She panted rapidly, her head turning one side and the other, looking for…

Looking for what?

There was nothing. There was no one. This was the end.

As the shadow of the giant beast came closer and closer, her yes stopped in one of the black birds. Then she saw that the whole flock was there, just standing.

The buzzards, unassuming and fearless of the monster that was about to kill her…

Unassuming.

And fearless.

Who would know if epiphanies are exclusive to humans? After all, humans were animals too, once.

She let out a shrill call.

To her ears, it had been just a meaningless shriek that only imitated the birds' tone; nevertheless, the homicidal jaws shut closed, the steps stopped, and the mighty head rose, tilting in confusion.

She let out a call again. The deadly blow wouldn't come. Not yet, at least.

The tyrannosaur was not a stupid creature, but it was wired in a very basic way, and had limited answers for situations: chase, fight and kill. If a prey ran, she would chase; if a challenger threatened, she would fight.

And then there was this thing, that had brought her so many worries, sleepless nights, and that dared to wound her. This thing that gave her all the reasons to kill it, and yet, it kept still, at full sight: It wouldn't run. It wouldn't fight.

She knew it was afraid, she could smell it, but all it did, was standing there, and caw like something completely different to what it looked like.

Slashers were vicious, threatening enemies. She knew them well. She had the scars to prove it. This thing smelled like slasher, looked like slasher …

But talked like a buzzard.

Buzzards were annoying, but they were not preys, nor threat. Buzzards were petty scavengers, useful from time to time.

She wouldn't kill a buzzard; there was no point in that.

The tyrannosaur didn't like odd things; she wanted things to behave like they normally did, things that she know how to react to.

Maybe if she could make it run…

She growled a challenge at the thing in front of her. It shrunk again, and gave a cry; it wasn't the pitiful cry of a wounded animal, just the dull, familiar caw of the buzzard.

The tyrannosaur tilted her head once more, shaking it, tired of riddles, tired of pulling and pushing, and roaring uselessly. She was too old; felt too tired, and, only now she realized, was too hungry to even bother killing this thing.

Maybe some other time.

She turned her back disdainfully at this odd animal, and went to her prey, to finally feast comfortably on it.

The young raptor stood up, feeling her entire body sore. It had been one well aimed kick.

She looked only a few moments at the monster, barely conscious that she was still alive.

Silently, and quickly, she ran to the forest.

* * *

 **Hey guys! How's it going?  
Well, here we are with a new chapter, and guess what? My pc is back from the dead! I hope I will be updating more often.**

 **Tess: Yeah, I know life can get like that very often XD I'm glad the chapter lightened your day a little bit. About Rexy getting you stressed... maybe is because she is, like, an old, cranky lady, always one anger away from a heart attack... ? XD Keep tuned, we'll see how far does Charlie's brain get her.**

 **MaddyR: With some luck and ventriloquism.**

 **Guest: I know... I mean, I write as much as I think is needed for that particular chapter (it could be more sometimes, and less other times) but expect longer chapters in the future. Thank you for stopping by!**

 **WeirdRaptor: Let's say that we're gonna find out about her in a couple of chapters more.**

 **Jelsemium: She is young and inexperienced. Giver her time, she will commit new mistakes. Also, thank you for the corrections, I'm working on them!**

 **Hellraven-Ovo:Believe it or not, I haven't seen that movie, and everybody tells me is great! One more reason to check it out.**

 **Red rose of doom: Thank you! Keep tuned for more!**

 **Guest:That is awesome! I don't want to spoil, but expect more things related to their relationship.**

 **Ok everyone, once again thank you for staying, reviewing and liking. You all are an awesome bunch!  
Have a great week!**


	13. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**  
A naked buzzard

* * *

Few things were better than a good shade and a full stomach. The queen of the land now had both, and whatever had happened on days before, didn't worth even a memory.  
The mighty tyrannosaur yawned, scratching her chin with her hind leg, shifting lazily to find a more comfortable position. Life was good again.  
She felt strong, and rested; maybe it was time to patrol the fields once more. Meat was running out, and herds would be careless and confident after her long absence.  
The wind shifted, blowing through the forest, rocking gently on the canopies and bringing the alluring scent of the southern plains… and a less welcome aroma, of the one hiding in the forest.  
The tyrannosaur curled her lip, her good mood tainted with the presence of the intruder, even if it had become less bold; now it had acquired the most respectful habit of staying amidst the greenery, giving the tyrannosaur a respectful distance, and staying out from her weak sight. The great dinosaur could barely distinguish a silhouette that very well could be the same wind, shaking the ferns and bushes.  
She let out a growl: she was wide awake now. See how close it would dare to get.  
From time to time the warning made the aroma disappears, appearing later, fainted by a more comfortable distance. Other times, it just stayed until she stood up, as a last warning.  
She was more in control now. She had tracked the intruder into the forest, the day after their encounter, and she now knew it nested somewhere on the hills that surrounded her home. The woods were thick and the slopes too steep to keep forward, but she made sure to mark around, letting the intruder know where it hid.  
This was her land. Her own.  
The wind blew gently again, making the plants shiver, and the tyrannosaur had the vague notion of a sinuous tail that disappeared into the ferns.

* * *

Young, tender flesh was the best. And easier to get, too.  
The dinosaur felt no hurt in her pride for downing the very-long calf; it had been a while since she last saw one, and she couldn't resist the opportunity to hunt this one. Bigger game was her thing, but then again, she wasn't getting younger.  
As she ripped the body apart, the buzzards came down, insolent and noisy as usual, daring to rip shreds from between her very teeth, as she worked.  
The huntress snorted, shaking her great head, scattering the carrion eaters around. Annoying parasites…  
Almost as annoying as the one hiding in the tall grass, hoping for some leftovers, to whom she dedicated an especially angry growl.  
She saw how the grass parted, leaving a trail as the intruder ran away; at the same time, she heard the familiar buzz of the flying thing approaching.  
The insolent creature flew around her rapidly, circling her and descending almost at biting height, but at a very safe distance. The tyrannosaur roared at the obvious challenge, as she charged; on the side of the creature, she saw a tiny figure, pointing at her with one of those hissing sticks that bit at distance.  
She knew what those did. Apparently, the human didn't know what she was capable of.  
There was a loud bark of the weapon, and the tyrannosaur felt the sting of the dart crashing against the thick hide of her head. That wasn't the best point to aim at.  
And now the human would pay for that.  
The flying thing, surprised and scared, shifted and tried to hurriedly gain altitude, as the tiny man grasped to the side with all his might. The tyrannosaur made the air vibrate with her roar…  
And she let the thing go.  
As the flying creature got further and further, the tyrannosaur let out a satisfied huff from her nostrils.  
That would show them.  
She got back to her prey, and calmly ended her meal.

* * *

Twilight was upon, fresh and calm. A soft squall had dampened the air, and washed the blood and relieved the tyrannosaur's skin.  
Crickets, frogs and cicadas sang, creating a weird lullaby, old and otherworldly as it was since the time her ancestors walked under the same stars, on the same earth. Far away, the ghostly call of a lonely very-long joined the primal song.  
The tyrannosaur sighed. Old age and old wounds made up for the intelligence she lacked to feel moved, or nostalgic. She felt relieved instead. That was all she needed to know.  
She leaned her head on her nest's ridge, her eyes closing…

Charlie shuddered at the intense gaze, freezing where she was. The two amber orbs had opened all of a sudden, and the head raised slowly, the deep, menacing growl flowing from the giant's throat.  
Maybe it hadn't been a good idea after all.  
She took a couple of steps back, reconsidering her situation. She was hungry alright, and the meat shreds from last hunt were near her… but were they worth to push her luck even further?  
Another warning growl seemed to answer the question, and the raptor took another couple of steps back, ready to dart off.  
Her jaw shivered as she made a soft, gurgling sound: it was half a calming chirp on the raptor language, half the croon of a buzzard; half to give courage to herself, half to sound the less threatening possible to the monster.  
The giant tilted its head, confused. Maybe it was working?  
She dared some steps forward; too abruptly, perhaps.  
The giant stood up, charging.  
It wasn't working! It wasn't working!  
She got into the jungle, followed by quaking steps and a hateful roar. She didn't stop until she was beyond the point where the smell of the giant marked a line of trees, since not really long ago.  
She stopped a few seconds, staring into darkness. There were no footsteps, nor growl. The monster wasn't following.  
Good.  
The raptor took her time, giving the giant the opportunity to calm down, and taking the time to study what went wrong. She was fast to catch details.

The moon was looking above the mountains, when the intruder came back.  
The tyrannosaur let out a growl, and this was her last warning. The next charge would not be a mockery.  
It moved slowly, carefully, crooning… very differently as how she remembered slashers; it then leaned forward, lowering its head until it muzzle touched the ground, taking something from the soil.  
And then, slowly, very slowly again, it turned around, and got lost into the darkened woods.  
Its scent got fainter and fainter, until the tyrannosaur could only smell the humid earth, and the fresh perfume of the vegetation.  
The dinosaur huffed, half confused, and half glad she shouldn't stand up again, now that she was comfortable.  
Fearless, she leaned her head on the ridge, and slept.

* * *

 **How you doing guys! I hope you're doing fine.**  
 **Not long notes today.**

 **AnimalKrazed: Thank you! Keep tuned!**

 **MaddyR: I'm glad to read that it wasn't that much of a stretch! I did read Jurassic Park not really long ago, and it said raptors were at least as intelligent as primates, so I tought things like what Charlie did was inside the limits of animal intelligence. Hope you're doing great!**

 **Tess: School goes first, don't worry! I hope you are doing fine ;D**

 **Hellraven-ovo: Who knows? Maybe survival kicks in and gets you some kind of epiphany too XD**  
 **I'll check for the book too, seems like fun.**

 **OK guys, as usual, have a great week, and stay tuned for next week. There is something coming!**


	14. Chapter 13

**WARNING: there is swearing in this chapter, as humans show their ugly, flat faces in it. You have been warned.  
**

* * *

 **Chapter 13**

Team B

Under his gaze, the helicopter's lights made look the grass like waves. Back on his navy days he met the ominous void of darkness of the night in open sea. The field beneath and around looked just like that.

As the Chinook touched ground, Rodríguez jumped out. There weren't shouts, just hand signals, as the silhouettes of his men slid out, spreading on a defensive perimeter. From the back hatch, the VCR rolled onto the grass; Rodríguez knew the model, tough modified, and in this situation, he just fell in love with the silent, electric engine.

-Sir, the Hawks are heading north, looking for survivors. - Said Daniels.

-Tell 'em to be quick. They won't find very much. Keep 'em on the air, we'll leave on 'em if things get too rough.

And they could. Totally could.

Rodríguez trotted next to the cabin, signaling the pilot to take off.

-I'll down it on the helipad. - Cracked the radio.

-Negative that. - Answered Rodríguez. - The whole place has been compromised. Go back to the Carrier, but keep the engines warm.

He ran back to his men, as the vehicle lifted its huge frame and disappeared in the darkness, back to open sea.

After the sound of the twin engines died out, the darkness and silence surrounded them. Night was ink black around, with only a beacon of light on the distance; Rodríguez recognized the column of smoke towering above, building's light and fire merged in a warm gleam.

It was a familiar sight; and yet, completely different situation.

The VCR rolled away, taking the road not very far from them. Rodríguez led his men into the forest, silently walking into the jaws of the night.

* * *

Her body was sore. She slowed down.

She stopped, panting, letting the fresh air of the night wrap around her body, lessening the burning of the cuts and worn off muscles.

She wanted to call again, but she was out of breath. Call who, anyway?

Not Delta. Not Echo. Not Charlie. It was foolish to go look for them, now that the fight was over.

Owen was not behind her. He was with his own kind now.

She was on her own.

She looked around, at the forest, at the darkness, hearing the ghostly song of the living night; how wonderful it had seemed at first! How amazing it was to run at full speed, to hunt without walls on the way!

And now, she was alone. The world was wide, and dark; too wide, and too dark to be alone.

She heard a call, carried by the wind, faint in the distance behind her, back to the cold concrete place. It sounded familiar.

Then she heard the roar of the monster that fought Nameless.

There was no time to think. She had to go back. She had to go back to whoever was still alive. It was all she had now.

* * *

The lights flickered, but energy was still on. The place was a mess, but there wasn't a soul.

-Dixon, what you get over there? - Said Rodríguez.

-Nothing here sir. The whole control room seems intact. I think we can gain control of the system.

-Did you copy that? - Rodríguez said.

-We'll send our people later. - Answered a voice from the headset. - Just make sure the area is safe.

-Roger. - Rodríguez dryly said.

One of his men came running.

-We found Hoskins, sir.

-Alive?

-No sir, he was attacked.

Rodríguez groaned. The voice from the headset talked again.

-What about Wu? Where are Hoskins' men?

-They evacuated the lab, and they took a lot of things along. - Said someone through the radio.

There was a moment of silence.

-That son of a bitch. - Said the voice, muffled as the radio seemed to have been put away from his mouth.

Nearby, one of the Black Hawks roared as it flew. Rodríguez could see the light beams probing the nearby jungle.

-Sir, I have visual of your location. - They spoke from the radio.

-Alright, Carter, talk to me. - Said Rodríguez, turning around. - Do you see something close?

-I just see the lights of the buildings, sir. All around is dead.

-Keep close; try to get visual, our target can hide its heat signature. If you see something approaching, smoke it.

-Roger.

-Sir!

Rodríguez raised its weapon as he heard the man shouting, pointing. A few of the troops had gathered near the border of the lagoon, staring at the reflections of the moon breaking on the surface.

-Don't lean too close, boys. - Warned Rodríguez, staring at the broken tract of the perimeter fence.

-There's something in the water…

They all retreated as a big splash came from the waves. They could make out the silhouette of a large body floating, shaking violently from time to time. All of them raised their weapons.

-What the…- Said one of the men, narrowing his eyes.

-Rodríguez, gimme some light over the lagoon. - Ordered Rodríguez.

One of the chopper's searchlights pointed the water's surface. A white, mangled body swayed with the waves… and something big was swimming around it.

-Base, do you see that? - Rodríguez said. - Is that it?

There was silence.

-It is. - They answered. - That's the Indominus Rex.

-Well, you won't recover that body soon. - Said one of the men, as they saw huge jaws rising from the water, closing on the body and shaking, taking a chunk off it.

The men lowered their weapons, an uncertain calm filling the air. They turned to see their leader. Rodríguez grimaced. He knew better.  
The situation had just escalated.

-Sir? We found more bodies. - Said someone on the radio. - Whatever happened here, we missed it.

-Is Dixon back with the VCR?

-He just arrived. We're about to load it.

Rodríguez nodded.

-We'll be there ASAP. Hagen, bring the other Hawk; I want you and Carter circling us; whatever else is out there, I want to know if it comes too close. Alright men, we're moving!

* * *

Rodríguez took a look on the bodies.

It was so little, the man thought; he knew Hoskins, and by the looks of his bag, the fat bastard seemed to have dived into a meat grinder. He didn't necessarily like him, but he thought he didn't deserve to go that way.

The second and third bodies were similar to each other; they were no human.

Rodríguez had taken a quick review at the InGen documents back on mainland, and he remembered the footage they took secretly from Hoskins' little field test. But seeing the real thing, up close, was a whole different world.

The first body was a mess. It seemed to have landed on a live grill; the scorched flesh made it seem smaller, but just looking at the other one, he knew these animals were big.

The second body had all its bones broken. To Rodríguez it seemed like an over-sized lizard, but even dead it had a fierce staring, that no lizard had. It was more like an eagle, he thought. A bird of prey.

-It seems there was a brawl, sir. - Said Daniels.

-Maybe these two got tired of the big one bossing 'em around…- Said Rodríguez, watching the deep stabbing injures on the second animal. - Did you found another one?

-No sir.

-I thought there was four of 'em.

-The third one was neutralized back in the jungle. We found the fourth one's camera near the Visitor's Center.

-So either it was eaten or…

-Sir, we got something on the thermal – Said Carter through the radio.

-Eyes up, boys. - Said Rodríguez, putting all men in alert.

-Alright gents! - Shouted Daniels. - Reese, I want to see that cannon on position!

-Where is it, Carter? - Hissed Rodríguez, instinctively rising his rifle.

-Ten o' clock!

-Can you get a visual?

-Negative... it could be one of ours, sir.

Daniels got closer.

-A survivor? - He whispered.

Rodríguez shook his head.

-You saw those things in the footage, Daniels. Whatever it is, is not a survivor.

All men pointed their weapons across the street.

Rodríguez shuddered as the big, alien body stormed out the jungle.

* * *

Blue roared in rage. She came hearing a distressed call, hoping to find one of her sisters still alive; and now all she had found was this pack of humans, gathering over…

What were they doing to her sisters?

What were they doing!

She didn't care how many of them were; she knew how human blood tasted like, and she was worth at least ten of them. They would take their hands off her sisters.

Owen wasn't around to stop her. She was going to rip them to shreds.

Blue charged forward. She fought Fear incarnated; she faced Death itself without a flinch. She didn't fret a bunch of these flimsy creatures.

The weapons snarled; a deafening hiss in her ears. She felt a stinging pain on his sides as she charged. They had hit her.

She extended her claws at the one on the front, to at least kill him in a last, bitter act of vengeance before life would flow away from her.

The pain numbed her thoughts, her body convulsing as the hard, metallic chunks pierced the flesh of her chest and sides. A huge black veil warped around her body, as she fell to the ground.

What was that smell? She knew the scent…

Charlie.

Charlie had just been here! She couldn't be that far yet!

She tried to bark a call for help, but her body wouldn't respond to her brain. Little by little, consciousness left her, and her mind embraced the void.

* * *

-Jesus Christ! - Exclaimed Daniels.

Rodríguez lowered his rifle. It had been fast. Terrifyingly fast.

The body didn't stop until a few feet before crashing against them. Haven't they all shot, Rodríguez knew he would be dead.

He and four more of his men approached, rifles still up.

The body was wrapped with the black net from the cannon. Reese had always been kind of a happy trigger, but this time he wouldn't complain.

-What's the status? - Said the voice from the radio.

Rodríguez looked at the black bulge. After a few seconds, he noticed the growing and shrinking.

The guys on the lab said the tranquilizers were special for these things. And yet it took three of them and two tasers to bring one down.

-It's alive. - He gasped, and he didn't know if the tone was of surprise or answering Base's question. – Reese! Bring the strainers here.

They took the net off the dinosaur carefully. Rodríguez saw recent wounds all over its body, and immediately knew it had been part on the struggle.

Why to come back?

He stared back at the bodies, now inside their correspondent bags. He shook his head, getting rid of the unnerving thought.

Lizards didn't know loyalty. Lizards didn't mourn their dead.  
The hind legs and arms had been restrained by a sort of heavy handcuffs. One of the men raised the large head to put the halter on.

-Shit! - He wailed, as the jaws almost closed on his arm with a loud snap. Still, blood spilled from the gash where the sharp fans scratched.

The men quickly stood, pointing to the animal. It didn't move.

-A reflex. – Said Base. - We've seen it post-mortem too. These things made sure to deliver a final blow even after they're dead.

Good timing, thought Rodríguez bitterly, sharing the angry look of the injured man. He put the muzzle himself.

-Alright, load it in the VCR. Hudson, I want you have that gash looked up as soon as we are on the cruiser…

The air brought a distant thunder. The night sky was however clear. That was no storm.

-What was that? - Base asked.

-You tell me. - Answered Rodríguez. - Hagen? Carter?

-Nothing from up here…

-Same he—wait, I think I see something. There's a… there's a signal in the thermal. It's something big, sir, and is coming right at you!

Rodríguez didn't need anything else. He shouted the men to get on the vehicle.

The VCR darted silently, leaving behind a large shadow lurking amidst the park's remains.

* * *

Charlie got to the old paddock. The silence, and the smell of removed earth and fear welcomed her; everything looked so unfamiliar now, so silent…

She got closer to the cages. The scent of her sisters was still clinging to everything, merging with the humans', and the fast things…

This was home. If someone would come back to find her, it would be here. If Echo, or Blue, or Owen was looking for her, it would be here.

She heard the growl of a vehicle approaching; a loud buzz, filling the air, and a large shadow, projecting beams of light to the earth.

What was that?

Charlie turned to the paddock, indecisive. She didn't want to get far from this place, hoping her sisters would come, but she didn't want to face this odd, menacing thing on her own neither.

She looked into the dark night.

Blue would not fear the darkness. Blue would not fear the night. If Blue was out there, she would be in the shadows, maybe waiting for her.

The young raptor gave her back to the cages, and ran into the jungle, silently, hiding from the burning eyes of the flying monster above her.

* * *

 **Hey guys! I decided to update today because, what the heck! Time to shake some things up.**  
 **I told you we would know of Blue soon, huh? Well, here we go.**

 **MaddyR: You're very welcome!**

 **Tess: Ah, school life. I don't miss it XD**  
 **Take it easy, hope you have a great week!**

 **Well, stay tuned, everyone. Once again, thank you for hanging around, you are all great!**  
 **Have an awesome week!**


	15. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Aurora

* * *

The helicopter left, its lights getting further and further into the slowly clearer sky.

Inside the cargo compartment were the two body bags and the cage transporting the remaining animal. Now they were someone else's problem.

He got a bigger matter on his hands.

Bill Rodríguez walked down the stairs, to the control room. He was someone hard to miss: short and muscular, he walked straight, a frown frozen permanently on his dark skinned face.

Behind him, on the ship's deck, the two Black Hawks waited for a systems check. Those men who had been on land were dismissed, but awaited orders at any given time.

The ship's corridors were narrow: like every combat vessel, space was maximized to carry weaponry, or in this case, equipment and vehicles.

Several of the crew members saluted him, as he made his way to the Monitor Room. Some of them were on their way to relieve those arriving on the patrol rafts; all with clockwork precision.

Rodríguez thought of Hoskins' men. He knew many of them, and the most weren't those cowboys and mercenaries InGen used to hire back on the day; they were good men. Good men that followed a fool.

The door in front of him opened and slowly slid back as he entered. The click of boot heels colliding and military salutes announced the man before the figure stooped over the control panel noticed him.

-Sir. - Rodríguez said.

The other one was dressed in a grey uniform, clearer than those of the ACUs. He was taller than Rodríguez, slim and well groomed. His expression was undecipherable.

This was John Hicks, the one man on control of the whole mission. He turned from the bright monitors mounted on the wall.

-I want detailed information, Bill- Hicks said.

-We recovered the bodies and one of the animals alive, sir. - Answered Rodríguez. - We found out one of the paddocks was compromised, and there's an asset out of containment now.

-Which paddock? - Asked the other one.

-It was paddock number nine.

Hicks sighed, and Rodríguez thought he saw him sagging a little.

-Rexy's… - He said, under his breath. - God knows what the hell happened.

-Want the men to probe the island, sir? - Asked Rodríguez.

A smirk twisted the other man's lips.

-To track her? If she is alive, she will be miles into the jungle; she lived on this island for decades, and knows it better than you and me. God forbids we bump into her on land, without someone keeping tabs… send the choppers to see what they can find. They say Dearing is already in San José, with the rest of the survivors. We will probably receive _intel_ by the end of the day.

Rodríguez nodded.

-What about the systems? Is everything running?

-There're gaps in the perimeter fences; Main Street's demolished and energy goes on and off… but everything seem like it can be fixed.

Hicks thought for a while, before answering:

-Then we start tomorrow morning. Get the choppers on standby, and tell Tech and Repair Team to get ready. Once we make sure security is good and running, we send in Maintenance and Vet… What does the patrolling says?

-Nothing yet. Everything seems in order.

Hicks nodded. No one comes in, and nothing goes out.

-Twenty years… - He said, turning back to the monitors. – I'm actually surprised it lasted so long without blowing out of control.

Rodríguez kept silent. Was it bitterness he detected on that voice?

-Alright Bill. - He said, turning back to see him. –Go get some rest. We'll be hanging around a good while.

* * *

Rodríguez took a sip from his mug. The coffee was already cold, but he didn't mind as long as the bitter drink kept him awake.

His cockpit was well lightened, narrow and Spartan, everything neatly arranged despite the constant rocking of the ship. He had some papers and a large topographic map unfolded in front of him, on the low table next to his cot; it showed the island; taped all along it, enlarged portions of terrain showed the place in detail: thermal photographs, satellite images, buildings blueprints…

He raised his head when he thought he heard the thumping of a chopper, muffled by the ship's walls. He knew both Hawks were still on the deck, and he concluded it was the transport helicopter, bringing staff to gain control of the installations as soon as they deemed them safe.

As safe as a place like this could be, anyway.

* * *

-Good night. - Said hicks.

The man on the screen of his laptop answered the greeting dryly.

-What's the situation over there, Hicks?

The man gave a detailed description on the mission status: unexpectedly, the crisis seemed to be aborted even before the Aurora was just offshore of Nublar. Wu's monster died, somehow lured to the lagoon where, presumably, the mossasaur caught it. Main Avenue was a mess, but the park as a whole was basically intact, and except for a paddock, the rest of the installations and systems worked just fine. As for Wu himself, and those remaining from InGen's Team A, they were all still missing, along with millions of dollars in equipment and embryos.

Now it was a matter of salvage everything salvageable.

The Aurora could be offshore for weeks; they would take control of the installations, and it could be even possible to bring staff to maintain them until further notice. One asset out of containment was not as bad a situation as it could be, as long as it was not Wu's abomination.

The Legal Department would make sure to block any intention to impound with paperwork, for years if necessary. Masrani Global would get back everything it could, before the UN and the rest of the world ripped the island apart.

And they would make sure to cover their tracks.

-What about the raptors? I think you said there was one alive…

-It's on its way to Hammond Town, along with the bodies.

The man nodded, although Hicks could say he was feeling unsure.

-Nothing can relate us to that animal, Hicks, you hear me? As soon as we get this mess resolved, I want you to take care of it immediately.

Hicks nodded. He understood raptors were still Masrani and InGen's shared responsibility. The Board could blame everything it wanted about the Indominus on InGen, but the use of raptors as weapons was under Masrani's installations, however Hoskins took the decision by himself.

It was a relief to know almost all of them were dead; the corpses would be destroyed, their tags erased from all records; the remaining survivor would be secluded in a secured, isolated location: as far as the world concerned, the raptors were still on the island, or never existed.

And it would remain like that, until everything was settled and they knew what to do with the rest of Jurassic World.

* * *

 **Hey guys! How's life?  
These days I'm gonna be super busy, so there could be one week or two without chapter, but don't worry, this is far from ending.**

 **Guest: We'll see...**

 **MaddyR: Well, they'd have it a lot easier have they not made an undefeatable dino either... but I think time and time again, Jurassic Park people had showed us they don't like it easy XD**

 **Tess: I... I don't know XD I'm not a natural speaker neither. I'll check it out, I promise. Have a nice day too!**

 **Smugraptor :I wouldn't do that... yet.**

 **RaptorSquad4Life: I know -_-**

 **hellraven-ovo: It could be, although, Blue being Blue, she probably doesn't need the storm to escape. Lilly will have food for a while, don't worry ;D**

 **Alright guys, thank you for everything! Have an excellent week!**


	16. Chapter 15

**WARNING: There is some swearing in this chapter, because being a hardened soldier alone in the dark with dinosaurs kind of makes a man do that. You have been warned.  
**

* * *

 **Chapter 15**

Unlikely

* * *

The air was chill; she could see scattered patches of sky through the canopies, grey although wind was already shredding the clouds away: heavens were a marbled texture of blues, white and grey.

She was following the giant's trail to the south, open through time and constant use; everything faintly smelled like the monster, though it hadn't left the nest early today, probably waiting for the sun to warm up a little more before going to hunt.

But Charlie wasn't feeling like waiting, or following that day. Her leg was a lot better, though the deep gash would leave her a scar and a slight limp. She would let big game to the biggest hunter, but she was eager to hunt something of her own.

Walking away from the trail, she got into the forest.

* * *

The air was moist, pristine, every aroma clear; the smell of wet fur was especially conspicuous, and she could barely hear the leaves and twigs cracking under tiny hooves.

Here the terrain was steeper, and the narrowly spaced trees gave the small mammal an advantage. Charlie snorted loudly, shaking the humidity off her body, walking away carelessly until her footsteps got lost into the quietness of the forest.

Silence fell over the world. Wind cradled the canopies. Frogs and birds sang anew, after the predator left the vicinity. The deer dared from her hideout. It shyly smelled the air on the direction the raptor went…

All of a sudden it felt its back snapping under the weight of its killer; talons sunk on its flesh, and it bellowed a short cry before ivory daggers sunk on her neck. It was dead before it realized who did it, or how it happened.

Charlie lifted her head, licking her lips, purring in delight. It had been a while since she tasted warm blood, still pumping from the heart.

She took the deer in her jaws, and trotted silently uphill, to hide and eat calmly.

Hiding to eat was half instinct, inherited from her long disappeared ancestors, but the other half was something she learned, with a clear thought in mind: she didn't feel like sharing that day.

Then Charlie realized: there was nobody to share with, anyway.

It was still odd for her to eat in silence; there weren't the familiar growls of greedy Echo, her own hissing at the deceiving purrs of the more diplomatic Delta, nor the angry barks of Blue, demanding the best part of the killing, and leaving the three of them with nothing but shreds.

There was no nipping, no shoving, no lashing tails, nor grooming one another after; just the sound of feeble bones breaking, echoing across the cliffs.

Suddenly, Charlie realized she didn't quite remember the voice of any of her sisters. She had barely heard her own, if only to fake a buzzard's calling…

She stood up. She felt strong. She could hunt for herself again. It was time to go out from under the giant's shadow, and keep looking for her siblings. An isolated raptor could survive alone. They were resourceful creatures. But they needed a pack, a family, to live.

She went downhill, back to the trail. Except for the giant, and the occasional wanderer, the northern lands were empty. Maybe it was time to go back to the south.

The plains had big game aplenty. Even if they wanted to avoid the human's territory, her pack would stay close to where the preys were.

Charlie trekked along the giant's trail, as she went further and further into the south. And as she ran, she gave loud calls for her family.

It felt good to hear a known voice again. Even if it was her own.

* * *

Rodríguez had his eyes fixed on the vehicle in front of his. He never was a man of many words, but he had been very silent lately. His men could tell: he didn't like it here.

Patrol duty was a routine now, and he used to be with the men as often as he could: it prevented them from slacking, and kept him in touch with the unit.

The man in front on him had been looking out the window since they left the perimeter wall.

-What you lookin' at, Simons? - Rodríguez said.

Simons turned his face towards him with a smile.

-That's my daughter's favorites. - He pointed out with a nod of his head. – _Parasaurolophus;_ I can tell you about them, she never gets tired of talking about dinos!

Simons laughed shortly.

-I'd love she could look at them, she would go crazy. - He said, looking out the window again.

Rodríguez half smiled, and looked out too. They were passing by a group of dinosaurs, grazing calmly on the plains. Several of them raised their colorful heads, looking at the vehicles with bright, dumb-looking eyes, like those of a cow.

Rodríguez knew these were harmless. That wasn't what he was worried about.

They didn't say anything, but he knew his men were in awe of this place, like a bunch of kids; he could see it in the quick peeking they gave to the outside, and things like what Simons just said.

Now that the crisis seemed averted, many of them had relaxed a lot. But Rodríguez knew better than that.

Here and there, he could see the animals roaming the landscape, on pairs or small groups; they seemed more curious than threatened by the silent cars, and it kind of unnerved him. Many of them were easily bigger than an elephant…

And somewhere, out there, there was one that could hunt them down and kill them; they had found the remains of its hunts, and tracked it back to its nest in the mountains.

They had yet to think a way to cage it back.

He knew one or two things about wild animals he encountered on jungles all around the world; the sound and smell of humans, and the lights of buildings and vehicles would keep them at bay, and even in the case of an attack, he knew his weapons surely could take anything down; probably even dinosaurs.

The incident with Hoskin's men, and the encounter from weeks ago taught him otherwise.

He eyed his rifle. What have these things to fear from them?

Even when reinforcements, technicians and heavier weaponry arrived to take control of the island again, it still seemed like nothing was enough; the Rex was several tons heavy, and had 22 square miles of forest to hide in. Constant overflies were scheduled to keep track of its whereabouts, but the sightings were sporadic, and as they later found out, the tracking implant lost signal when going north, into the mountain range. It could go anywhere it goddamn pleased.

And sure as hell, it had fear of no man, beast or machine.

A few days before, a helicopter tried to dart the thing down, only to be attacked because the gunner missed the shot. He remembered reading that these same animal had basically ate a jeep, and to his mind came the very thing Hicks told him at arriving: God forbids we bump into her on land.

* * *

The room was still the same, illuminated by the screens' lights. The same walls, the same equipment… and yet, it felt like somewhere else. It even smelled different; he never thought he would notice the change of cleaning products. But he did. And it annoyed him to no end.

Everything was annoyingly different now. Maybe it was a bad idea to come back.

Lowery leaned his head on one hand. There were no visitors walking through what once was Main Street; there was a cleaning team instead, along with a couple of bulldozers, clearing off the rubble. Armed patrols on jeeps crossed the grasslands instead of the Gyrospheres.

Jurassic World was no more. He let out a sigh.

Not even days after the incident, all ACU available (and willing to go back) was brought back and deployed on the island, along with vets, engineers and a heavy armored Unit of InGen's men. They needed someone who knew the system, and they offered to bring him back.

They made an offer he could not refuse…

Control of Isla Nublar was regained faster and easier than anyone would have suspected.

It was almost as if everything was back to normal. The animals were being fed on schedule, the cameras all worked, the systems all worked. But nothing was normal anymore.

-I hope you're still working on that glitch on the tracking tabs, Mr. Cruthers. - Said a voice behind him.

He jumped, starting to type hastily.

-Uh, um, sure! I-uh- I'm on it!

Hicks nodded, eyeing the man in front of him.

-What's the status up until now? - He said.

-Well… - Lowery grunted. - Up until now, we've lost few animals, not counting the ones Rexy ate, of course, and I'm still trying to figure out why the signals get lost in the mountain range.

-What are the possible causes?

Lowery shrugged, shaking his head.

-Magnetic interference, the volcanic activity…

 _Aliens_ , he thought, but he wouldn't dare to say it. He wasn't with Claire anymore, and this Hicks guy honestly intimidated him more than what Hoskin's had. He looked to him like an Imperial Officer. That could also break his legs.

Like a younger, buff Wilhuff Tarkin _._

Hicks' wrist communicator rang. He checked it, and made to leave.

-It's getting dark soon. We have a patrol out there today, scanning the plains. Get your channels accessible and keep an eye open for the T-Rex - He said, before leaving.

 _Rexy_ , Lowery thought, but only nodded.

He missed Claire. And Vivian. He now regretted not to deny coming back, but unemployment seemed like a pretty big deal back then… maybe it was a big deal, but now he thought he surely could find something better anywhere else with his references, right?

Right?

The thing was he didn't enjoy being here anymore. As much as he didn't like what they were doing with the park back then, it was still a place where people came to marvel at things. A place where everyone could see what he always knew: dinosaurs were _freaking_ awesome.

Now it was more like a concentration camp for them.

He sighed again. Typing on his keyboard, he pulled out the video feeding from the patrol; small screens showed the point of view on the headset cameras; it was eerily familiar, and Lowery shuddered at the memories it brought back.

An intermittent little point appeared on a corner of his screen, with the correspondent rectangle containing the tracking tab's number.

VNv5.0210115.

-Well, hello there again, whoever you are. - He mumbled.

He narrowed his eyes at the tab, his thoughts focusing now on it.

As usual, it had appeared out of nowhere: coming from the north, with a code he couldn't really remember. At first, he had thought it was a glitch on the system, maybe an error on the movement sensors, assigning a code to the wrong animal.

But if that were the case, and it was in early versions of the system, the new tab number would be different every time, and a warning would display next to the tab. This was the number of an animal that either wasn't on the system, or he never saw on the plains before.

It was one of many things he had to look over. Later. Probably.

-Hey patrol, this is control, how's it going? - He said through his headset. - Nice evening for a walk through the woods, huh?

-Ah shit, it's Lowery again. – Was the response on the other side of the line.

* * *

The last golden beam of sunlight hid under the horizon. Nightfall came, and she felt more confident under the cover of the darkness. She was silent, and fast, like a ghost. And the trek made her hungry.

Charlie hadn't had much luck hunting near human territory, but prey there was confident, and probably unsuspecting by night. She didn't need something large: a very young one would be enough, at least for the night; she didn't want to be caught alone with prey, so close to the humans' den.

Maybe she would get lucky, and the smell of blood would attract the pack, if they were close by.

She ran through the forest, hiding from the light of the stars; the wide open ranges opened before her, the grass tall enough to conceal her, but Charlie didn't feel safe to get into it. She could hear the hum of the high voltage wires on the distance, and even the faint echo of human voices. Maybe they were out hunting too.

She began to doubt her decision.

A rustling on the distance caught her attention. She could make out the outlines of large bodies lying on the ground, wide backs bobbing slowly, at the compass of a quiet breath.

The herds slept right in the middle of the range, still unassuming of both humans and the raptor.

She had to be quick, and pick one on the outskirts of the group. A slow one...

* * *

-… and everyone dies in the end. Is insane, I tell you, you should watch it on your... uh, you guys have lunch breaks, do you?

-You definitely should, Lowery. - Said Simons, shaking his head.

-C'mon guys, you get to be all Rambo out there in the fresh air, while I sit here until my butt is numb. It gets lonely sometimes.

-Yeah, you should come along one day: inside a jeep all night, waiting not to get eaten…- Said Warren.

-What? I got your backs, bros!

Simons arched his brows, mumbling.

-I feel safer now.

-Hey! I heard that!

Rodríguez pinched his nose. At least this shift was almost over.

-Anyway, I… hold on…

There was a moment of silent.

-What's up Lowery? Hicks caught you playing Minecraft again? - Snorted Warren.

-Hold on guys, something's going on with the Paras near you.

Everyone looked at each other.

-Is it the Rex? - Said Rodríguez.

-I, uh, I don't think so, it would show on… let me check the cameras, I have a pair near the place.

* * *

Lowery pulled out the window, staring intently. Everything was green through the night vision. The cameras were a little far from the exact location, but he could see the herd.

The animals seemed upset, bobbing their heads one side and the other nervously, their eyes shining white in the darkness. Through his speakers, he could hear them bellowing.

Something was scaring them.

He checked the map on his computer. Rexy used to hunt by daylight, though who knew…

He stared at the tracking numbers. The ones crammed near one another were the Paras.

The one a little further from them was the rogue.

VNv5.0210115.

-What the…? Does anyone else have a better view on that area?

The room was filled with the sound of furious typing.

-Nothing here.

-I see nothing.

-Nothing…

-Well, go figure…- Said Lowery.

A couple of the tabs from the Paras advanced towards the rogue. On the camera feed, Lowery could see them charging something, hidden in the tall grass.

* * *

The trumpeters mock-charged at unison; the youngest ones got a little closer, stopping and turning, showing off their bravery.

Charlie hissed furiously. She knew they were bluffing.

They were not so brave by night. She needed them more scared.

She moved along the menacing phalanx of bodies, roaring and growling. They could not see her, and could not know it was only one attacker. She could make it seem like there was more.

She needed them to panic.

* * *

-Did you hear that? - Said Simons.

Rodríguez nodded. A chill went down his spine.

He remembered that roar.

-Lowery? - He said.

There was a rumble, starting slowly, distant… and growing louder, and closer.

A large body appeared from the darkness, running across their field of vision, into the light of the headlights and passing them, getting lost into the night again. Then another. And another one. And then a pair of them.

The ground was shaking.

-Stampede!

Warren stepped on the accelerator, veering the wheel to run in the same direction of the animals.

There was a loud thump, and everything started to spin out of control. The metal creaked, and Rodríguez saw the windows went from translucent to white, smashed.

The car was upside down. One animal had hit them, and turned the car upside down.

Rodríguez's mind was working fast. He had landed in an awkward position, but quickly got on his feet.

-Simons! Warren! - He shouted.

-Here! - Both men answered.

There was another thump, and the wailing of dinosaurs passing them by.

-Goddamnit! - Said Rodríguez.

-Rodríguez! Rodríguez, you there? - Said Lowery.

Another thump. The car spun again, this time over its roof, creaking.

The quaking stopped. They had to get out from there.

-C'mon! - Shouted Rodríguez, as he kicked one of the crashed windows, until it gave up and fell.

He crawled out, and as soon as he was on his feet, he raised his weapon.

-Lowery, talk to me, can you see us? - He said making sure the other two were right behind him.

-Are you alright? – Said Lowery.

-Alive, at least.

Rodríguez looked around; making sure all the animals had passed. Further away he could hear the mourning trumpeting of the dinosaurs, and the rumbling as they ran… from what?

-What the hell just happened? - Hissed Rodríguez. He was already pointing his rifle up, to where he calculated the Tyrannosaurus head would be.

-So-something scared the Paras, but…

-Well, no shit. - Said Warren.

-Where is it? – Asked Rodríguez.

A cry suddenly rose from the darkness. Unnervingly close to them.

The men shivered at the shrill screams and growls, clearly the sounds of a life or death struggle…

That suddenly came to an end.

Rodríguez gulped. He turned on the lamp on his rifle, and pointed forward.

* * *

VNv5.0210115.

VNv5.0210115.

VNv5.0210115.

What the hell was VNv5.0210115?

Lowery was typing desperately, looking through the attraction animals' numbers.

He had never seen the dinosaurs scared of anything other than Rexy. There had to be some other thing out there, something they didn't account for…

But how? The registry only showed two attraction paddocks open: Rexy's, and the Indominus'.

VNv5.0210115.

VNv5.0210115.

VNv5.0210115.

He tried to calm down. What the code stood for?

Species. Version. Designation number.

Species. VN.

What the hell was V…

Lowery paled. He stared at the feed from Rodríguez's headset camera. He had to be wrong.

* * *

Rodríguez lifted his rifle, pointing the light, ready to shoot.

Before he illuminated the body on the ground, he could see the two iridescent eyes, like fireflies on the darkness, and heard the growling.

He aimed. He shot.

The other two men shot as well, their rifles barking in the night, detonations like lightings.

Rodríguez raised his hand, ordering to stop.

He missed. They all missed.

The animal left in less than a second, just as he was pointing the light at it.

But it was enough for him to recognize the body shape.

-Lowery…- He hoarsely said through his communicator, retreating back to the jeep with his rifle ready. - Get someone to pick us up right fucking now.

* * *

-There's a VCR on its way right now, hold on. - Answered lowery.

He passed a hand over his mouth. He also recognized the dinosaur through Rodríguez's camera.

VNv5.0210115 was in the system, but not listed as an attraction animal. Not yet. Because they weren't trained yet.

Their paddock wasn't listed as breached, because someone had erased all registries of that. They were not attractions: they were an especial project in development. An InGen project.

VNv5.0210115. Now he knew what VN stood for.

 _Velociraptor Nublarensis_.

* * *

 **Hey guys! Have you ever had one of those weeks when everyone believe you were abducted by aliens or died? I just had, like, three of them in a row. Work has been crazy, but I'm back with a treat.  
** **I kind of took some liberties here, but I hope none of them turn back to bite me in the face.**

 **MaddyR: She, you know... hangs around... and stuff...**

 **Gest and GuestReader: C'mon guys, things wouldn't be fun if they were that easy.**

 **Tess: At first I wanted an all dinosaurs kind of tale, but I don't know... something inside me pushed me to include these guys. Let's see what happens. Thank you, I hope you got a good couple of weeks too!**

 **OK pretty people, thank you for your patience and support. There miiiiiiiiiiiiiiight be some problems for me to update again, but don't worry, I haven't stopped working on this.  
Take care guys, I hope you got an amazing Halloween and that the next week will be awesome too. See you around!**


	17. Chapter 16

**WARNING: There is swearing and violence in this chapter... not violence like SAW or something, but men, things get intense. Dinosaurs have a tendency to get intense very often. You have been warned.  
**

* * *

 **Chapter 16**

Rogue

* * *

There were only three of them. Only three.

She could easily take them down… couldn't she?

The air tasted like earth, and smelled like fear and blood. The moonlight illuminated dimly through the dust lifted by the stampede, but Charlie could clearly see the three silhouettes close to each other, backing off towards the vehicle, and crawling back inside.

They've made it really clear: they didn't like her in their turf. These were their hunting grounds.

But they still were humans, fragile and weak. She had killed them before: she just had to pounce once, retreat into the darkness, strike again…

There was a searing pain on her shoulder, going through her arm, all the way to her fingers. She instinctively shrunk the wounded limb against her body. It really hurt.

She always wondered what the barking weapons could do: she could see, during the fight, when Nameless took over, that they left small holes in the tree trunks. They couldn't be that bad.

She hissed, and tried to lick the wound; it was a deep gash, as if a fang had cut through her flesh, and was still biting on her bone. Barking weapons were bad. Really bad.

It had been a bad idea to hunt here. It had been a bad idea to come.

A new wave of pain went through the raptor's arm. The adrenaline from the chase was wearing off, and the pain from the shot was growing to be impossible to ignore.

Wounded and alone, fearful, overwhelmed… there was only one thing she could think of.

* * *

It sounded kind of like a bark, or a bird's call… a huge one, like no other bird he had heard before. It went through the night, from the darkness, in the direction the animal had run.

It sent chills through Rodríguez's spine.

They were squatting on the car's ceiling, back to back, pointing their weapons to the windows. Help was on its way, and they could only hope it wouldn't take too long. It had only passed a few minutes, but seemed they were taking enough already.

-It's out there…- Said Warren. His tone reflected the exact perception the commander was feeling right now.

-Lowery, can you see it? - Said Rodríguez through his communicator.

-It hadn't moved. Like, at all. - The other answered.

-M-maybe we hit it? - Said Simons.

-Maybe…- Answered Rodríguez.

"Maybe not…" He thought grimly.

He had been stuck before. He had been stuck in trenches, warehouses, and it wasn't the first time he had been stuck inside an upside down car. The difference was that in those occasions, he had been faced men: he could deal with men. He didn't fear any man.

Being hunted by something, not human, was not a pleasant feeling.

-We'll be fine here, right? Right? – Said Simons.

-We'll be fine. - Answered Rodríguez.

He wasn't sure. He could only hope.

The barking stopped. Now there was only the night, and them.

* * *

She calmed down. The pain was still there, undeniable, but she was getting ahold of herself.

No one showed up to her call. No one. And no one answered either.

The pack was not near. Maybe the pack was not here at all.

There was a sound in the distance. Charlie could see the lights approaching, and the gentle hum of the fast, silent thing coming closer.

She had to get out from there. She had to go back.

To the nest.

To what now was home.

* * *

-Thank God! - Said Simons.

Rodríguez turned his head and saw the headlights approaching, stopping a few feet from their car. Several men came down, shouting his name and pointing their weapons around.

He sighed.

-Are you alright? – Said the man, kneeling outside the window.

-We're fine. - Nodded Rodríguez.

He crawled out from the vehicle, followed by his two men. He stared into the night, towards the way the raptor had disappeared.

-Where is it, Lowery?- He said.

-It-uh, it is running away…- Said Lowery through his headset.

Rodríguez nodded. He headed to the VCR.

-Keep tabs on it. I want to know exactly where that thing is going. We're going after it. - He hissed, as he hopped into the vehicle.

-Sir, maybe is better if we head back, just to check…

-I said we're fine! – Rodríguez suddenly burst.

The man that talked to him before was startled, but said nothing. He only nodded.

The commander felt a sting of regret, but only got into the vehicle.

The VCR went forward, silently, following Lowery's instructions.

* * *

"Oh man…"

-It's heading north…- Said Lowery.

He didn't like this. He didn't like this at all.

He had been researching the information on the system. The number of the tab was that from the youngest raptor of the batch; it had been the last raptor they had hatched on Nublar, because they were still developing the research on them…

Charlie. They've had named her Charlie.

He looked at the monitors displaying what the vehicle's cameras were filming; he could see the tab's number right ahead the vehicle on the map, but through the camera feed he could only see a patch of light in front of the headlights, and darkness all around.

-Guys, maybe it would be better if we keep this in the morning… you know, once we're all more calm and such…

-Just keep an eye on it, okay?

-Okay.

He would never understand what these military dudes' deal was.

Suddenly, the elevator door opened with a hiss, and the grey uniform stormed into the room.

-What happened? - He dryly asked.

-The-uh-the patrol team bumped into a stampede… and a raptor. - Lowery said. When Hicks turned to see him, with a grim expression on his face, he rapidly added. – Oh, they're, uh, they're just fine! They're just…

-Rodríguez, where are you? – Hicks talked through his communicator.

-We're on a chase, sir. We found a raptor on the fields.

-Are you positive of that?

-Positive, sir.

-It's one of… uh…

Hicks sharply turned to see him. Lowery immediately regretted when he opened his mouth.

-Well…- Lowery pressed his lips on a thin line, seeing Hicks approaching.- I did a little researching and, uh… the tab number is one of Owen's raptors.

-Are you sure? - The man said, leaning on the tech's desk, eyeing his computer's monitor.

-W-well, the tab number is right and all…

-Impossible. - Rodríguez joined the conversation through his communicator. - We recovered all raptors' bodies during the cleanup. The only survivor is in a secured facility.

Hicks had his eyes fixed on Lowery's monitor, his brow frown in deep thought.

-Actually…

Hicks turned to see Lowery. He gulped.

-I kind of maybe, like, looked through the records, and here's the thing: one of the raptors was listed as killed, but no remains were ever found.

-The reports said Grady saw it blown up by a rocket launcher.

-Well, you know… reports…

Hicks stood up, staring at the dot moving through the map, followed by the tab indicating the vehicle's position.

- _Son of a bitch_. - He hissed.

He was going to have a long conversation with Grady. Right after he had a bitter chat of his own with the Board members.

On the camera feed, they could see the outline of the forest, rising in front of the VCR.

* * *

The fast thing would never get into the forest. It was too big, and the woods grew too thick for it to pass... then again, Owen's one was perfectly fine when they were chasing Nameless. The forest wasn't a safe bet.

The pain went through her arm again, but Charlie knew she couldn't stop now. She had to get to the mountains. Humans would never get into the monster's territory.

But maybe it was too far. She was as fast as the fast thing, but she sure hadn't the same stamina, and the hunting wore her off.

She had to stop. She had to catch her breath.

Panting, the raptor came to a stop, looking back to see if the humans were following her.

There was only the night, and the sound of its inhabitants.

Maybe they gave up?

As an answer to her question, a ghostly light came from beyond the tree line, the shadows projecting long, thin, moving as if they were alive, until the light beams came to a stop.

Several silhouettes appeared from nowhere, black against the blinding white from the thing's bright eyes.

They were coming.

What did they want? She was out from their territory already! She left them her hard earned prey again!

They didn't just want her out. They wanted a fight. They were hunting her down.

A resentful hiss came from Charlie's throat. She thought of Blue: if they wanted a fight, Blue would give them one… and so would she.

She moved into the shadows, her eyes fixed on the one that was ahead of the group…

* * *

Rodríguez had his rifle ready, the rest of the team behind him. The night air was fresh, but still, he was sweating.

He remembered the other one, the one they captured in the park. It had been less than a second.

Less than a second.

All around him, beyond the headlights' reach, was pitch black night; every tree branch looked like an eager claw trying to reach him, every weird form a body, ready to jump out at him.

It had been a bad idea to follow it here. It had been a bad idea to come.

He lifted his fist, signaling the team to stop.

-Sir?

He eyed around, his finger on the trigger.

-Rodríguez, cancel the chase. Come back right now, you hear me?

The commander sighed.

-Roger that. – He turned to his men. – Alright men, we're going back to base…!

* * *

Now!

She leaped on the air, silently. The man had no chance.

* * *

-Simons!

The shrill scream was followed by the weapon's shooting. Night turned amber and yellow, and red.

It all happened so fast, and yet, it was like slow motion.

Rodríguez saw the slick, powerful body coming out from the darkness, like some kind of a snake that suddenly spread out and fell on Simons, like a hawk, and then disappeared in the night again, dragging him effortlessly as he screamed.

The men leapt right behind, firing… No! They have to stop shooting! They were going to hit him!

He kept screaming. He was still alive. He was still alive. Stop shooting!

And yet, he kept shooting. He was running forward, into the forest, and shooting, following Simons' screams.

And then, suddenly, it all was silent. And he was alone.

Alone, in the darkness.

Rodríguez's breath was heavy. This wasn't the first time he was alone, dammit! Why was he shaking? Why he had this knot in his throat?

Why couldn't he stop thinking of those fiery eyes, back at the park, when they were recovering the bodies?

He heard a twig cracking. Then he heard the hiss, and the trembling breath beneath it.

He turned sharply, pointing his rifle, to the elevated terrain going into the hills.

* * *

She hissed a warning. This human better was careful with what he was doing.

Beneath her, she could feel the heat of the other human's body, as he trembled. She assured her grip on his arms, sinking his teeth deeper in the flesh of his shoulder, right to the bone. The human wailed.

She knew it wouldn't die… probably. But she had to make sure to hurt him. And she had to make sure his alpha, or at least that's what she thought him to be, get the message: you hurt me, I hurt you.

Leave me alone.

* * *

It was a hard shot. He couldn't focus. And it was dark.

A thousand thoughts came across Rodríguez's mind; was it hiding behind Simons like that on purpose? Animals didn't do that. Animals didn't take hostages.

It was just a goddamn animal, for Christ's sake!

He could see the man was still alive, though he was obviously about to pass out.

-Let him go!

Where the hell was everyone else? It dragged Simons a little more into the forest, always making sure to take cover with him.

-Let him go, goddammit!

He shot at the air. Maybe he could startle it. Maybe it could bring the others to him.

He actually heard voices coming through the forest.

-Help is on its way! - Said Lowery through the headset.

It better be.

The golden orbs stared at him intently, cold, and at the same time burning a hole through his skull.

-You better let him go, you fucking…

A twig cracked. He turned.

Oh God, he turned!

He heard a thud, and looked back at the place where the animal had been.

There was nothing. It was gone.

And it left Simons behind.

Rodríguez ran forward, followed by the shouting of his men, securing the perimeter.

He rushed at his man, and kneeled besides him, rapidly pointing his status: the animal had shredded the bulletproof vest, and there were several cuts on his body; his shoulder was bleeding profusely, from the many puncturing wounds where the fangs had sunk.

As he was trying to stop the bleeding, he couldn't help the thought of Hoskins. Had he been a second later, was that how he would have found Simons?

-C'mon Simons, don't you die on me, okay? – He said. Simons was conscious, but obviously in shock.

He had to get Simons out from here.

Another man came close. Between the two of them, they took the wounded back to the vehicle.

They walk back to the VCR seemed incredibly long. Had he ran this much by himself? It had seemed a lot more less than that…

They finally got to the vehicle and boarded it. They left the forest, and hurried back to the base.

The control room was dead silent. Lowery passed his hand through his mouth.

He turned to look at Hicks, and shivered. The man seemed as if he was about to kill somebody.

-Keep in contact with them. - He said, as he turned around and got out from the room.

Things were about to get ugly for someone. 

* * *

She didn't want to run no more. She didn't want to fight no more.

She was glad to see the vehicle getting away from the forest, and getting lost into the night, back to the humans' territory.

They got the message, it seemed.

Charlie walked into the deep forest, stopping from time to time to lick the wound on her shoulder. It still hurt badly. She wouldn't make it to the nest tonight. Not like this.

She would have to spend the night in the open, with the danger of the humans coming back. They better wouldn't, because she could bluff just that much.

She found a fallen tree, beneath which a small cave opened, probably the hiding spot for a family of deer, or wild boars.

She crawled inside, wincing at the pain on her arm, and slept.

* * *

 **Keep your head cool when dealing with dinosaurs, boys and girls. SPECIALLY when dealing with dinosaurs.  
These days have been really busy, but our project is about to finish and I hope I can get a break to think and write a little more, so stay tuned.**

 **Tess: Ugh, those sneaky capital letters, thanks for the heads up. I hope your test went not so bad ;D**

 **Jelsemium: Maybe not by raptors, but you should see how my dogs behave when I forget to feed them.**  
 **Fortunately, Charlie has better taste than to eat human flesh. She just... you know... maul them. To death, sometimes. No big deal.**

 **Guest: Dun-DUN-DUUUNNN!...**  
 **Yes.**

 **OK amazing folks, thanks for sticking around, you are all wonderful. Stay tuned for more. Have an great week!**


	18. Chapter 17

**WARNING: There's some mild swearing in this chapter, because some heroes swear too. You have been warned.**

* * *

 **Chapter 17**

Grady

* * *

She had already picked the scent, when the rumbling voice of Speaks-like-thunder came from the distance, scaring some birds and echoing through the hills around.

Auburn kept forward, sniffing, trying to focus on the search, when a shrill scream made her jump. She peeked real quickly to the rest of her siblings, and unsurprisingly, the whining was coming from Hazel: she stood behind, sitting on her haunches, and crying. She didn't want to search no more.

She was afraid of Speaks-like-thunder; and that was reasonable, but she was also afraid of everything; she already slowed them down when refusing to go out from the paddock, shrinking in fear of the ferns.

 _The ferns._

If it were for Auburn, she wouldn't bring her until she was bigger. Or even better, she wouldn't bring her at all.

Auburn snapped at her, hissing angrily, urging her to move, but that only made her whine even more.

Fine; if she wanted to whine, she would give her a reason to do it.

She turned around and walked decisively towards her; both Garnet and Flax moved out from the way, knowing very well what was coming.

Hazel shrunk in fear seeing her approaching, but didn't make anything to stop the smacking and kicking, except giving a shrill call for help.

-Hey, knock it off!

The voice was firm, secure, and lately, quite annoying.

Auburn turned her head towards the sound, her eyes fixed on the man walking on her direction. She dared a hiss, showing some teeth… maybe he wasn't as tough as he seemed.

-Shut it! - He said without stopping, snapping his fingers at her. It was his last warning.

She shrunk at the harsh tone, retreating. He was bigger, stronger, and still the alpha.

For now, at least.

Owen kneeled next to the smaller raptor, which rapidly searched for comfort under the man's shadow, moaning like a chick fallen from its nest. The big hand caressed the animal's loin, as he was looking for deeper gashes or broken bones.

-Goddamn it, Abby…- He said when, checking the dinosaur's teeth, he saw the bleeding holes where two fangs were supposed to be.

-How bad is it? - Said a voice coming from his headset.

-She will be missing another pair of teeth. - He said. - Guess we call the day off, huh?

-The darn pig got out from the fence so, yeah, whatever. - Said the voice, which sounded less than pleased.

-Well, that's one ham less for us, one more for the compys. - Owen answered, smiling.

He stood up, the smallest raptor in his arms, purring glad for the security and warmth of the man's body. He started walking back to the truck, the other three raptors following from a distance.

-That one's gonna be taken from your paycheck.

-Hey, I've been telling you to fix the goddamn fence! – Owen replied, hopping on the back of the vehicle. – Take it easy! It probably will get trapped in the moat like the last one, anyway…

-Yeah, and guess who's gonna have to go pick it up?

Owen laughed, as he looked for a more comfortable position in the corner of the truck bed. It was nice to get out from the heat and the mosquitoes, even when the truck always reeked of a combination of wood shavings, raptor and her own sweat.

He looked outside. The three young raptors stood there, staring at him, waiting for any indication that they were allowed to board.

Auburn was the eldest, and she was growing fast: she was already three feet tall, and she ate like there was two of her. The dark brown raptor was starting to show signs of wanting independence, and Owen knew it wouldn't take long for her to defy him.

It reminded him of another little punk he trained, not so long ago.

Garnet and Flax were the classic followers, and even when they had started to see Auburn as their leader, they still respected him enough to not take sides into his constant arguments with the eldest raptor.

-Get in here, you asses. -He said affectionately, after whistling.

The three animals jumped inside without difficulty, heaping around him.

Hazel hissed a warning, feeling the other three siblings too close for her comfort, and was answered in the same fashion. Owen hushed them all, caressing them.

-OK, we're a go! – He said to the driver, knocking on the car's metal.

The truck silently started, and they were all in their way back to Hammondtown.

It was a bumpy road. The raptors were faring well, but he always had to hang on to the truck's ceiling, and that day it was with only one hand, while he used the other one to cradle the smallest dinosaur.

He peeked at the small animal, her head hiding beneath her arm, like a bird sleeping.

He knew they tinkered with Hazel's DNA more in the lab than with the other ones. He knew what they were trying to do: a tamer breed, easier to control.

The result was an atrophied, dysfunctional animal. Hazel was small even for her age, and had she being a wild animal, she would have died in a matter of days. Raptors weren't the kindest creatures, and even when they bonded strongly, even in the wild, there was no place for weaklings.

They wanted the same intelligence, strength and resistance, but with less of the aggression and viciousness, stubbornly ignoring that all of those aspects were connected.

He caressed Hazel's head with his thumb, sighing sadly. If her siblings didn't kill her first, and she kept showing herself useless to the pack, they would very likely going to euthanize her. And try again. And again. Until another stupid, unnecessary accident happened.

He leaned back against the cold metal of the truck, watching outside, to the road and the green hills towering far away, and beyond the moats, the walls and the electric fences.

* * *

-OK everyone, clear!

The gates opened loudly, the siren moaning mournfully, warning every personal to stay out from the paddock. The vehicle entered fast and silent, followed by the four animals that ran past it and stopped, waiting for new orders.

-Close the gates!

The driver came down, unwary, at the same time the four raptors jumped off the vehicle. They immediately turned to him, and the biggest hissed at the man, challenging. He stood there, frozen.

-Grady…! - He groaned.

-Abby! – Owen's voice came from the backside of the car, followed by a clicking sound.

The raptors snapped their sight at the trainer, and darted in his direction, minding little attention to the driver, whom hastily climbed back to his seat and pulled up the window.

-Halt! – Owen said, stopping the animals on its tracks.

He almost smiled at the younglings.

He leaned in front of Auburn, and the rest of the dinosaurs crowded around the man, sniffing and rubbing against him, in a noisy mess of chirping and hissing.

-You need to learn some patience, you know? - He said, as he passed his hands along the neck and loin of the raptor.

The nervous creature chirped in delight, wriggling and twisting amidst its siblings, and their shoving to get some attention too.

-Take it easy, would you? – Owen said, as he wrestled to find the buckle on the raptor's collar.

With a click, the leather strip came off, along the little black box attached to it, much to the animal's delight. It barked demandingly, as it scratched its itchy neck.

-I would be faster, if you bunch of jerks would stay put. Now, Flax...

Suddenly, a barking call came from the distance, making the raptors turn their heads, tilting them to catch better the sound.

Owen narrowed his eyes, sighing from the nose. He turned to see Auburn, and not very surprisingly, she was the one more intrigued by the now familiar call.

-Hey, Abby, eyes on me!

But the animal minded little attention to him, as she took a couple of steps forward.

-Abby!

The raptor turned to see him for a second, only to focus at the call again right after that.

She dared a call of her own.

-Hey!

Owen went forward and pinched her neck. It wasn't enough to hurt her, but she needed to feel the contact to know she was being reprimanded.

The animal, surprised, jumped forward with a yelp, shrinking meekly. What had she done wrong?

Owen stood there, hands on his hips, towering at the animal to show dominance. He didn't like that, but he needed to show he was in charge. It was the best for all of them.

He relaxed when the animal started to cry, visibly upset.

-Hey now, no need for that…- He said, as he kneeled close to her.

He caressed the muscular, long neck and loin of the raptor, assuring her he wasn't mad. She answered with a delighted growl, shoving her head beneath the man's armpit.

One by one, Owen removed the collars from all of them. By the time he was done, the rest of the pack was horsing around, wrestling or digging, and he caught Flax and Garnet sniffing at the vehicle, scratching the driver's door intently.

-Alright everyone! – He said firmly.

The pack took a few moments and a second call to gather around, staring attentively at the gate on the other side of the ample space they were into.

The gate opened, inviting them to the soft soil and the shade of the ferns and bushes, but they stood there, turning their gaze to the alpha.

-Good. Damn good…- He said, his hand open in the air. - Now, go!

He lowered his hand in a sudden movement, pointing to the gate. The raptors darted forward, roaring, and got into their paddock, the gate closing right behind them.

Now it was time to take care of other stuff…

* * *

He was smiling as he approached. He better stopped, because she didn't share his mood.

-Your girlfriend is being a bitch. Again. - The woman said harshly.

-Whoa, Luz…! - He replied, with a devious smile on his face. - She's still our boss! You shouldn't talk about her like that!

She shoved the bucket of meat chunks against his chest, turning around.

-Your _other_ girlfriend. - She answered. - The one that needs a pedicure.

-I hoped you would get along.

-Yeah, well, it's hard being nice with someone who constantly wants to rip my ankles off.

-Geez, women. _Amirite?_

Luz answered with a stare that prevented Owen to laugh. Openly, at least.

* * *

The building was one of those really old paddocks they used back in the nineties, on the original park at Nublar. Sturdy, small, pragmatic… it looked like a miniature of a prison, complete with a watch tower and tall, electric fences. It was all they had at hand at the moment, and he hated it.

She probably hated it even more.

Owen and Luz were standing on the catwalk on the side of it, leaning against the railing, staring inside the cage.

There was not very much to see at first sight: a lot of vegetation, palm trees and ferns…

But there was a hiss, and a rustling of branches, as a lean, bluish body slid silently from one side of the enclosure to the other.

-So…- Said Owen, his sight fixed forward, trying to find the golden eyes among the greenery.

-Well, there're good news, and bad news. - Luz answered.

-Mind to begin with the good ones?

-She actually showed interest in the puzzles we gave her, so there's that...

-That sounds nice. What is the bad news?

-She learned to use such puzzles as projectiles, as one of the vets had the misfortune to find out this morning.

-That… doesn't sound so bad.

-They are titanium and Kevlar, Owen. She's not precisely the most delicate of animals.

-Ouch.

Luz sighed.

-Owen, we can't keep this up. MG wants a report, and we can't keep this… pet of yours in solitary containment much longer…

-And I told you before we shouldn't. Like, all the time.

-You know we can't just let her influence the pack. Not with how good the training is going.

-First of all, the training is going as well as it was going last time, and as you, me, Claire and a bunch of InGen's men recall, it didn't end pretty. And second, you talk of her like she's some kind of psycho or something!

-And you keep defending her as if she were your own daughter!

Owen shook his head, groaning, as Luz pinched her nose. Neither of them wanted to start another pointless argument.

-Anyway, we let her go now, or we wait for Masrani's order to euthanize her.

Owen sighed, as the familiar body came out from the vegetation, into the small clearing inside the enclosure. Blue greeted him with a nod and that weird chirping she made. He nodded as well, whistling softly in response.

He took a chunk from the bucket, and lifted it in his hand. On the other hand he had his clicker, and he made it sound, calling for the animal's attention.

She stood straight, looking at him intently, as she was meant to.

-Good girl! - He said, tossing the meat at her. Blue caught it in the air and swallowed whole.

He saw for a moment some claw marks on the walls and the trees inside. He knew, from recent experience, what solitary confinement did to a highly intelligent, highly aggressive animal. And he hated seeing Blue showing alarming signs of going that way.

-We're not killing her. - He said, grimly, as he tossed another chunk at her. - And you know we can't just let her out. The other raptors…

-I know, I know. - She replied. - But it doesn't depend on me or you. She is technically still Masrani's. Either we free her, or kill her, or box her back to mainland, it is up to him.

Owen passed his hands through his hair, sighing in exasperation.

-Look…- She said, putting a hand on his shoulder. - The paddock seven is almost done repairing, and we're moving the girls there. Paddock five is just next to it: it's bigger, brighter, a real beauty. I'll have it checked, and we'll move her there a few weeks, see how they react seeing each other. Depending on that, we'll decide if we move her in with them.

Owen nodded, smiling warmly at the woman. She made to leave, and then she stopped, suddenly remembering something.

-By the way, Hicks called earlier, while you were in the open with the girls. He said you call him as soon as you could.

-Ugh, that guy… did he said what he wanted?

-No, but I warn you: he sounded pissed.

- _Ugh._

Luz laughed, and left. Owen stared back at the raptor which, after a while, turned around and got into the bushes again, out of sight.

-I'll make it up to you, girl. I promise.

* * *

-OK, _sir_ , what the hell you want now…

Owen sat on his couch, sipping from his beer; it tasted like the finest thing he had ever drunk, and it better was, because smuggling it was even harder than all the stuff he brought from his bungalow. Hammondtown's installations had really strict rules against alcoholic beverages; all part of its "observe without interfere" policies.

He put the can next to the laptop on the table.

Forty three inbox messages. Forty. Three.

-Alright… something urgent, then…

He opened the last one sent, marked with only one hour of being received. It indicated a date and an hour of arrival at Sorna's dock, and that he better be there on time.

-What the…?

He browsed through the messages, all of them more or less the same. And all of them involved an individual number: VNv5.0210115.

He remembered that number.

One of the messages had an attached archive, and he was intrigued when he tried to open it, and it asked for his employee ID.

He entered the code, and saw three video archives.

He opened the first one.

Owen paled at what he saw.

His cell phone rang from across the room, and he took a few seconds to get up and pick it, hooked as he was on the images in the screen.

He saw the number. It was Claire's.

-Hey! - He said.

-Where have you been? – She said, obviously stressed. - Hicks have been nagging me all day about you! Did you call him already?

-I-I was about to…

There was a silence.

-Do you know already? - She said, and by her tone, he knew she was worried.

Worried about what? About him? About what they were doing on Nublar? About what they were doing here, on Sorna?

-Yes. Yes, I was watching the videos just now.

There was another awkward silence. Neither of them knew what to say.

-How is that possible? I mean, you saw it… you said you saw it…-She said.

-Yes, I know. I know.

-Hicks didn't say so, but he implied to some on the Board that you lied. I assured them you told nothing but the truth, but still, they want a meeting with you.

It was for him. She was worried about him.

He laughed, half at Hicks, half happy for Claire being worried about him.

-What's so funny? - She said again, angry.

-Hey, just, don't sweat it, OK? – He said. - Everything is gonna be fine.

-Yeah, I'm not the one they're gonna throw in jail!

-Hey! Gimme some credit, will you?

-Alright, just… just promise me you'll take care, OK?

-I will. - He said, staring back at his laptop's monitor.

Because of the night vision, everything on the monitor was black or green, but he didn't need colors to recognize the pattern on the skin, nor even the body language.

That was Charlie. And she was alive.

-I'll be damned. - He said, after he hung up.

He better get prepared.

* * *

 **Dun DUN DUUUUN!**

 **Tess: Glad to hear you did good on your tests! AS for my week, well, it went actually pretty good too. Things are going smoothly for once, and that is very, very welcome.  
Hope you're still doing great!**

 **Guest number 2: Uuuuuuuugh... I'm kind of sad/glad I actually see what you're saying. I can't put it in words but, every time I write from the dinosaurs perspective, I try to make the world, like, more colorful, while from human's perspective is kind of dull.  
In this chapter I tried to find a middle ground, but I don't know... I mean, I understand what you're saying (and I appreciate you point it out!). Hopefully I'll get back on track on the next chapters. Work must be messing with my head XD**

 **OK awesome people, once again thank you for your support, and I hope you have a great week! Greetings to all of you!  
**


	19. Chapter 18

**Hey guys! Guess who's back?  
Sorry for the long waiting, but the New Year kept me busier than I tought, and well, I hadn't much time to spend writing.  
Anyway, here's some more Charlie's Path for everyone.  
But before going forward, I'd like to wish you a really good year, and I hope your holydays were (or still are) awesome. Thank you very much for the reviews, the favorites and all the reading you have done!  
And, this time, I'd like to answer the messages from the beginning:**

 **Guest Reader: I love all Jurassics, but if they lacked something, were baby raptors. I don't know, is a little perception I have. Glad you liked, wait for more!**

 **Guest: Raptor Lord is back to bussiness.**

 **Tess: YES, as much as I like to write what a dinosaur is thinking, Jurassic World was, to me at least, a tale about the relationship between both sides, human and dinosaur. So expect more human soon. Hope you got a great start of the year!**

 **Icanhascamaro: I usually use dashes when it comes to speaking parts... guess is a matter of countries (I'm not american, and every book I've read uses dashes) and because nobody complained, I thought there was no problem.  
HOWEVER, thank you for bring it to my attention. This chapter actually has the quotations, to see if it gets easier to read. Thank you again for the heads up!**

 **Duesal Bladesinger: Brains over muscles... even if you are a dinosaur!**

 **I think there are no warnings this time, so let's get into it!**

* * *

 **Chapter 18**

Bronze

* * *

Sun was bright, shining on the white sands of the beach, making it seems like it was all sown with jewels. The sea was crystal clear; the waves breaking calmly against the soft contours of Isla Nublar, as its green, luxurious silhouette rose against the blue skies. It seemed like heaven on earth, the lost Eden. But he knew better. It was nothing but a deceiving cover for what had laid under the canopies for decades now. All of those islands, all of the Cinco Muertes, were nothing but nests of horrors.

Ernesto saw the place, and for a little, strange instant, missed the sea roaring, crashing violently against the dark grey cliffs, the foam rising and dancing against Sorna's dark walls, impervious to the fury of the ocean. In his mind, at least that island was honest about what its depths hid.

Death. And Fear.

He thought of his great grandfather, a small, little crazy farmer from Puntarenas. His ancestors, he said, were Tsun-Si, fishermen from Nublar that told him tales of angry, dark spirits that populated the islands, sleeping under the thick canopies, eager to devour the careless men who dared to set foot on their land. When Ernesto was old enough, he even laughed of what the old man said, sitting outside his humble house on fresh nights.

Many years later, as the old man rested under the town's earth, his wrinkled, toothless face came to Ernesto's mind often, when rumors of what the _gringos_ were doing in the islands spread. Sometimes he wished he could apologize, the nights when he was woke up by the ghostly hoots from the Dilophosaurs.

The ship came to a stop next to the pretty wooden dock, anchors sliding noisily and men hurrying to tie the ropes. A large, six wheeled vehicle came down from the ship's innards, carefully rolling in the direction the rest of the crew was pointing, making the planks creak under its weight.

Ernesto rolled the metal dreadnaught until it reached the concrete of the entrance road, and drove forward, into the complex of buildings that rose before him.

He eyed the man on the passenger seat; Owen was unusually silent, staring out the window, tapping his fingers on the vehicle's board. Ernesto knew he was not the serious kind, but he also knew what was like to work with those caged _diablos,_ let alone looking for them in the middle of the jungle.

"Leave me here." He said, looking at the group of men they just passed "Park it inside the garage, they should let you in"

Ernesto stopped just enough for the American to climb down, and then drove to the Control building.

"Sir!" He shouted, trotting to reach the men in grey uniform. He saluted quickly, but flawlessly.

"Grady." Hicks responded, answering the salute. "This is commander Rodríguez, he is in charge on the field"

Owen saluted the shorter man, shaking his hand after. The grip was firm, almost aggressive, and very appropriate for the appearance of the man.

"You will be working with him to track down the animal, any information you need about the… encounter, the Commander will provide."

"Thank you sir." Owen answered, nodding to the Commander "My team is ready to start any time."

"First you're coming with me, Grady." Said Hicks, and no matter how much he tried to hide it, his tone sounded threatening. "We need to review some information from your first inform with the Directive Board"

* * *

The water rippled widely, the huge muzzle rocking back and forth as she drank from the pound. Bloody drops fell from its jaws, marking the muscular neck as the water slid, opening little paths through the blood splattered over the tyrannosaur's maw.

She sat idly under the shade, its recent trophy lying between her and the water, covered by the faithful gang of buzzards that followed her everywhere.

She let out a content sigh. She was in such a good mood, that she was more than willing to allow the intruder stay a little longer.

The tyrannosaur lazily turned its head toward the annoying smell. Her sight was always bad, but she could perceive the green blur standing on the field, and she liked better to point the business end of her jaws towards it.

She growled, but there was no way she would stand from her fresh spot to chase away Beggar away from her prey.

Unless it became too bold, that was.

* * *

Charlie stared at the giant as it yawned, showing its impressive weapons, freshly wielded.

The raptor was hungry, yes, but it wasn't the only thing that drove her to look for the giant when she heard the mournful bellowing and the victorious roar.

She came out from the bushes, its wounded arm tightly pressed against its chest. She stopped after a few steps, at plain sight, waiting against any good hunter's instinct, that wind carried her smell to the dreaded monster. She meant no harm, and thus, she didn't need to hide.

Seeing there was no answer, Charlie moved forward…

The bigger dinosaur lifted its head sharply. An intimidating growl made the air vibrate. Charlie felt aghast, fearing her eagerness and hunger spoiled her chance for a good meal.

But instead of roar or pursuit, the giant snorted, lowering her head again until it lay on the ground.

The raptor still took her time to approach. It was painful to walk that slowly, but she knew what sudden movements could provoke, and the last thing she wanted now was another pursuit.

She was sick of it.

The raptor came closer from the open side of the carcass. Almost all entrails had been consumed; still, there was plenty for a humble, famished raptor.

Before she sank her teeth on the bleeding flesh, she made sure to croon to appease her host; the practice had paid: the buzzards felt less threatened hearing their own language, helping Charlie to appear even less threatening.

With delight, but always keeping an eye on the giant, she ate her fill, and even sat at plain sight of the monster, but at a safe, respectful distance. It was half sleep, but her amber eyes were also fixed on Charlie.

A strange peace set as the time went by. The giant finally fell asleep, but Charlie knew it was as alert as if it was awake. This odd, close encounter gave the raptor time to observe and ponder.

Fear had made Charlie associate the monster with the concept of Death, and thus, in her eyes, the creature was Death incarnate.

But now, with her stomach full and as the day passed by, and after all she had passed through these last days, the concept for the creature that ruled the northern lands began to change, to blur. True, it was still a deadly, unfathomable force; and true, the further she could stay from its path, the better…

But hadn't Charlie found its nest, she would have starved, unable to catch a decent prey with her injured leg. And now, with her new wound, it would be hard to hunt anything ever again.

The monster let out a sigh and shivered, startling her. When she was sure it was not going to get up, she observed a while longer.

The monster was still a destroyer, a foe, but at the same time, a provider; especially on hard times.

A notion formed slowly on the raptor's mind, as she looked at the wrinkled, scaled skin, the huge chest growing and shrinking rhythmically with the creature's breath.

A human could barely translate the notion inside the raptor's mind. She wasn't actually looking a name for the monster, but just adjusting these new perceptions, assigning them to something she could recognize.

Had she have her sisters with her, it would have been easier: they would just invent a call for it, something resembling a word, accepted and recognized among them.

But then again, she hadn't found her sisters yet. And for the first time, she felt she probably never will.

At this realization, an odd, unpleasant feeling went through the animal's mind, souring the taste of the fresh meat. A human could call it sadness… a deep, desperate sadness.

But sadness was useless at survival. Resourcefulness, intelligence, strength… and companionship were things useful to survive. A raptor had intelligence, strength, and in Charlie's case, the resourcefulness to fill any void she could have.

The giant awoke with a yawn, shaking its powerful body. It paid little mind to the raptor, as it looked around, realizing it was getting darker, and probably time to get back home.

It stood up slowly, grunting, approaching to what was left of its prey. It picked it up from the ground, and began to walk to the north.

Charlie gave the creature more than enough space to move comfortably, and saw it heading to the dark masses of the mountains she left not so long ago.

The last dying light of the day tainted everything, like gold melted on top of the darkness of it all. The sun beams glowed on the giant's skin, shades and glares playing as the muscles worked under the skin. Charlie saw that color, and it came to her in that moment. That was who this monster would be from now on.

She gave a look behind her. Maybe something inside her still expected a call home.

As the golden disappeared, and the night spread, she turned, and slowly walked up the trail.

Back to Bronze's nest.

Back home.


	20. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

Slice of life

* * *

"We have a dead Para on the Crossroad" The radio crackled "Can you go check it out?"

"Do you have anything on the cameras?" Luz answered, as she walked towards the jeep, where his driver and two other men with the InGen uniform awaited.

She already knew that cameras probably didn't catch anything. The crossroads were well into the limits of the secure zone, and into the Sorna's real wilderness.

No place outside Hammondtown was precisely good for a walk, but animals had learned to stay away from what they now considered human turf, and fiercely territorial as they were, they stayed on their side of the island, rarely bothering the installations or the people who lived in there.

Dinosaurs had their country, and humans had their little corner of civilization; still, the latter had to constantly check the happenings and whereabouts of the animals, for the sake of the fragile ecosystem. They had already dealt with a prion outbreak in the nineties.

What killed the Para could have been anything: old age, a bad wound… but it was better to make sure.

"I'm on my way" She said "Need something from here?"

"How about a couple of Snickers and a Mountain Dew from the vending machines?"

"How about no?" She said, smiling.

She climbed on the passenger's seat and the vehicle started silently, rolling across "Main Av." and towards the gates.

The three heavy plates slid sideways to let them pass. As the wall itself, they were built with thick concrete over a steel frame; a powerful hit could crack them, but never completely break them.

The jeep passed the extensible bridge across the moat, and continued along the open trail into the jungle.

Luz looked back on the mirror; the walls of Hammondtown raised above the tree line, after a wide, clear area; the light gray against the green, sharp angles against the tangled, organic shapes of the jungle. With the vigilance towers and everything else, Luz always thought of the installations as some kind of medieval castle, misplaced in a land millions of years younger.

As the jeep got further along the road, Luz's radio came to life again, with the same voice as before.

"Roader Five, I see you coming"

"Roger" She answered "See you on the way back"

They passed a thick group of giant trees, and she looked above, to the canopies that formed a ceiling over them. She knew where to look, but it was really hard to find the smooth surface of the outpost, shinning with the few light beams that could penetrate between the branches.

* * *

The Crossroads were a wide, open area surrounded by forest, where the conspicuous trails of the animals had flattened the grass, creating grooves. It was on the way to a nearby drinking trough, and all kind of dinosaurs crossed it.

As they got closer, the flies and carrion birds announced the presence of a large, dead body, and just as they stopped, the smell of the carcass, exposed to the sun, hit their nostrils.

Luz and one of the InGen men climbed down the vehicle, the driver and the other man alert of the surroundings, ready to give the alarm for the other two to come back. All of them had assault rifles with them, and the woman had a revolver inside the holster on her hip.

Sorna wasn't a place to play around.

As Luz and the InGen man got closer to the large body lying in the field, they could hear the chirps and hisses from the compys, the little scavengers gorging on the flesh and then running away, scared by the humans' steps.

It was a young Parasaurolophus. The bright colors of the adults were still pale, and even when it was as big as a cow, it was still growing when it died; it lay on the side, its limbs beginning to stiffen.

The woman covered her nose and mouth, waving away the flies as she inspected the body closer.

"So?" Said the man "What was it, doc?"

"It wasn't sickness, that's for sure" She said "He was fine, well fed… I guess something got it"

The compys had bitten a lot around the big gashes in the animal's belly, so it was hard to say if the wounds were what killed the dinosaur or were the scavenger's doing. Still, the long, deep cuts…

The woman scanned around, looking for a trail. She found a long track of blood, blackened on the grass, coming from the deep of the jungle, the only evidence from the animal's last steps.

"Keep your eyes open" She said, as she carefully followed the trail of blood towards the forest. Whatever wounded the young dinosaur could still be tracking it down.

She stopped at a safe distance from the thick foliage. She knew about the Carnotaurs, and even though it hardly could have been them, she preferred to stay away from where the deceiving predators could hide.

The stumbling animal opened a trail from the forest, and getting into the darkness of the jungle, the woman could distinguish from where the animal had come…

There was a call, far into the forest, although she felt it unnervingly close.

It had sounded like a bark.

Luz was done with the investigation. She trotted back to the vehicle, where the other men seemed as upset as she was, and together they started the way back to the base.

* * *

"Couldn't it be an Allosaurus?"

The man sitting in front of her leaned back on his chair. He scratched his chin, the long, curly hair falling behind the angular shoulders. The other men always said Wayne looked like a scarecrow dressed like a tourist, and Luz had to agree with that.

"No, no..." Luz leaned against the thick Plexiglas wall, barely noticing a rocking "They are messier, and sure as hell you don't just stand up and run after an Allosaur mauling. It had to be the Rangers"

"Well, they're moving awfully north then…" Wayne said, raising his eyebrows and turning around on the chair, to face the computer screen.

Luz walked to be next to him as he typed, leaning forward to watch at the same monitor. A map from the island was deployed, divided in several color areas and crossed by equally colorful lines, creating a mess of shapes.

He typed some more, making all colored areas disappear and leaving only one, labeled as _RANGERS_.

After some more commands, a different colored area appeared, superimposed to the first one.

"They're widening their turf" Wayne said.

"Payne probably wants to try his luck against the Northerners." She said, standing up.

"You think so?"

Luz nodded.

"As far as I know, it had been a good couple of years for them."

The woman bit her lip, tapping her foot.

"They never get that close from the town anyway." Wayne said.

"Not yet" Luz sighed "It will be a pain in the ass if they decide to move next door. We would have to change the girls' training."

She groaned

"By the way, how's the Dino Whisperer doing on Sorna?" The man said after a few moments.

"Nothing yet." She answered, shaking her head "He says the tracking tabs never worked very well in the mountain range, and his girl hadn't left the north in a good while. Between that and avoiding Rexy…"

"They haven't caged her yet?"

Luz shrugged.

"The best of the best…" She said.

"Hey, seriously, I need some coffee up here, so if you don't mind…"

Luz closed the cage's door, smiling at the man behind the bars.

"I'll send some with Edwards"

The round structure trembled and started its way down slowly, the purr of the mechanism that lowered it barely perceptible.

As the metallic sphere crawled down, like a huge spider hanging from its web, Luz looked up, at the transparent structure wrapped around the tree trunk, like a crystal ring. She even could see Wayne going back to the computer, until the foliage covered her sight.

Back in Hammondtown, nothing seemed to be out of place; some routine checking of the hatchlings in the nursery, a general checkup of the girls… and then feeding Grady's girlfriend. Her favorite.

"Hey Doc!" Said someone

She was walking out from the young raptor's den, and turned to greet the big, white smile that approached.

"Oh, Barry, Heaven must have sent you!" She said "You think you can do me a favor?"

" _Pardon_ Doctor, I'm out to patrol duty." The man said, a devilish grin sparkling in his eyes "You need to show her you don't fear her"

Luz rolled her eyes, making the man laugh. He patted her shoulder and walking past her, towards the jeep area.

* * *

She climbed the stairs to the catwalk, with the usual bucket of meat chunks in hand.

She had been in Africa, South America, the Alaskan wilderness… not only she knew all the basics of a good hunter (tracking, the direction of the wind, prey trails…) but also learned a lot about the animals' behavior, both in theory and out on the field.

In her years in the wild, she had seen a lot of things, and she felt as she didn't fear anything. Even the dinosaurs, once she knew them better, were nothing but animals: not monsters; not aliens; just animals that, even when extremely dangerous, once she knew them better, were just as lions, or wild dogs, or many of the other creatures she had studied.

Then she met the raptors. And then she met Grady's.

Raptors weren't like the other animals: a glance on their fiery eyes was enough to know; they didn't stare like animals at all. One could feel them pondering, calculating… she couldn't put it in words, but behind those eyes she felt the same, if not more intelligence that she had seen in chimpanzees.

Except that there wasn't any resemblance, any familiar link between her and the raptors. She always found unnerving being analyzed by a non-human intelligence; a non-human, non-even-mammal, merciless intelligence.

And she hated when they put her on charge of Grady's one. She was the worst of them all.

"Here girl!" She said from the catwalk, making her own clicker sound.

The animal took its sweet time to appear, slowly sliding from the bushes, lifting her head to stare at the woman.

"OK…" Luz said. "There you go!"

She tossed the meat, and even heard the chunk falling in the leafy ground. The raptor didn't even flinched, staring intently at her. The woman snared.

She knew the blue striped raptor recognized her, and seemed to relish on unsettling the woman. She could growl, or snarl, or snap at other caretakers, and sometimes even at Owen, but when it came to Luz, she only stared silently, intensely, following her every movement. She gave the woman the chills.

Only one time the raptor had attacked the electric fence, making sparks rain all around the woman that screamed as she had never screamed in her entire life. Owen had almost choked laughing, but since that day, the raptor never tried another attack, and she never got too close to the fence by herself.

She tossed some more chunks before letting go a frustrated groan. The floor was littered with the pink, bloody treats, and the damn animal hadn't even moved.

"Fine…" She finally said "Grady can't blame me. I fed you."

Owen had always insisted in the fact that the raptor had to eat from the hand of whoever was feeding her, and not only picked it from the floor; he said it helped to form a bond.

But _his_ raptor ate only from _his_ hand, and even if she wanted to, she didn't dare to risk hitting the animal in the nose with a meat chunk, trying too hard to make things easy for the creature. Things between them were tense enough.

So she just tossed the food around, and the raptor later picked it. She ate. Mission accomplished.

Why the hell did Grady want them to form a bond, anyway? Auburn and the girls were tamer, smarter, and she imprinted on them from the moment they hatched. They were the focus of the investigation right now, and Grady's one… she was probably going to be put down, anyway.

Luz walked toward her quarters, as the sun descended under the waves of the Pacific.

* * *

 **Hey guys! How's it going?  
Well, not much action in this chapter, but I deemed important to show some of the everyday life in Sorna. They probably never get bored, I guess.  
Anyway, I'm sorry if I don't respond your review today, but I'm really tired, there's work tomorrow, and I'm going to sleep right now, but I promise to answer them as soon as I can.  
Thank you again for tagging along, and have an amazing week!  
**


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